X' 


AN   OUTLINE 


ELEMENTS  OF  THE  ENGLISH  LANGUAGE, 


FOR  THE  USE  OF  STUDENTS. 


By  N.  G.  CLARK, 

PROFESSOR    OF    RHETORIC    AND    ENGLISH    LITERATnRE    IN    UNION  COLLEGE. 


NEW   YORK: 
CHARLES   SCRIBNER,    124    GRAND   STREET. 

1863. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  18C3,  by 

N.  G.  Clark, 

in   the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  Northern  District  of 

New  York. 


BIVERSIDE,    CAMBRIDGE: 
STESEOTTPED    AXD    PRINTED  BT    H.    0.   HOUGBTOS. 


III  I 


PREFACE. 


The  work  here  offered  to  the  pubhc  has  been 
prepared  with  special  reference  to  the  wants  of 
students  beginning  a  course  of  studies  in  Eng- 
hsh  hterature.  It  is  the  substance  of  lectures 
given  in  the  University  of  Vermont  during  the 
last  five  or  six  years,  with  such  additional  sug- 
gestions and  material  as  have  been  derived  from 
larger  works  recently  published  on  the  same  or 
kindred  subjects. 

The  time  devoted  to  the  study  of  the  English 
lano;uao;e  and  literature  in  the  college  course  for- 
bids  anything  more  than  a  mere  outline  of  the 
elements,  —  an  introduction  rather  than  an  ex- 
haustive discussion.  The  most  that  can  be  done 
is  to  map  out  the  field  it  occupies,  to  show 
its  o-eneral  bearings  and  relations  to  other  de- 
partments  of  knowledge,  and  if  possible  to  lay 
down  principles  which  may  serve  as  the  basis  of 
future  more  careful  and  extended  inquiry. 


iv  PREFACE. 

One  reason  for  adding  another  to  the  many  vol- 
umes on  tliis  suLject  already  puLlished  and  compet- 
ing for  public  favor,  will  be  found  in  the  method 
adopted,  which  aims  to  bring  out  more  fully  than 
lias  hitherto  been  done,  so  far  as  I  know,  the  vital 
connection  between  the  language  and  the  physi- 
cal and  intellectual  elements  of  English  character. 
With  this  purpose,  it  has  been  judged  best  to 
consider  the  language  alone,  or  with  only  such 
reference  to  its  literature  as  should  be  strictly 
necessary  to  a  clear  understanding  of  the  matter 
in  hand.  Though  the  work  has  been  prepared 
primarily  for  the  use  of  students,  this  method 
mav  serve  to  frive  it  an  interest  to  the  general 
reader. 

Another  reason  is  to  prepare  the  way  to  con- 
sider the  literature  of  our  language  in  a  similar 
method,  —  in  its  elements  of  thought,  and  as  the 
expression  of  the  course  of  English  thought  at 
different  periods,  and  of  the  various  changes  and 
modifications  to  which  it  has  been  subjected.  It 
is  believed  that  the  time  is  not  far  distant,  when 
the  scientific  methods  so  generally  introduced  into 
the  discussion  of  other  subjects  may  be  applied 
here  with  advantage,  and  literature  cease  to  be  a 
mere  aggregate  of  written  productions,  and  attain 


PREFACE.  V 

to  something  of  the  order  of  Science.  At  the 
least  it  may  be  worth  our  Avhile  to  be  working 
in   that  direction. 

The  more  important  Avorks  consulted  in  the 
preparation  of  these  pages,  have  been  referred  to 
in  foot-notes,  and  occasionally  in  the  text  for  a 
more  full  notice  of  the  topics  alluded  to.  These 
references  will  enable  the  student  to  follow  out 
his  investigations  to  almost  any  extent.  More 
special  reference  is  due  to  the  invaluable  works 
of  Marsh,  Craik,  Max  Miiller,  and  Trench,  to 
all  of  which  it  is  hoped  that  this  volume  may 
serve  as  an  introduction.  As  the  works  of  Craik 
have  not  yet  been  republished  in  this  country, 
and  are  not  therefore  accessible  to  students  gen- 
erally, greater  use  has  been  made  of  his  investi- 
gations. It  was  my  design  at  first  to  republish 
his  "  Outlines  of  the  History  of  the  English 
Language "  with  some  notes  and  additions,  but 
the  difficulty  experienced  in  determining  what  to 
reject  and  what  to  add,  led  me  to  give  it  up, 
with  the  exception  of  his  "  Illustrative  Specimens  " 
which  are  here  reprinted  with  the  addition  of 
as  many  more.  Some  of  the  latter  are  due  to 
the  politeness  of  Mr.  Sibley,  the  obliging  Librarian 
of  Harvard  College,  who  allowed  me,  during  the 


Vi  PREFACE. 

few  days  I  had  at  command,  tlie  free  use  of  a 
very  rich  collection  of  old  English  works,  the 
very  sight  of  which  almost  filled  me  Avith  despair 
of  my  attempt. 

The  specimens  are  given  as  illustrative^  and  to 
be  made  such,  they  must  be  studied  in  connec- 
tion with  the  body  of  the  Avork. 

N.  G.  C. 

Union  Collegk,  Schenectady,  N.  Y.,  7 
May  25,  1863.  | 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER   I. 

CELTIC  AND  ROMAN  ELEMENTS. 

PAGE 

Object  of  the  work  —  Physical  and  mtellectual  elements  of 
the  English  character  and  language  —  The  Aryan  family 
of  languages  —  Division  —  Period  of  Migration  of  the 
Diiferent  Races  —  The  old  British  or  Celts  —  Place  —  Con- 
test with  Rome  —  Adoi)tion  of  Christianity  —  Struggle 
with  the  Saxons  —  Character  —  Influence  on  the  English 
mind  —  Love  of  Poetry  —  The  Irish  Branch  —  The  Scotch 
—  Welsh  —  Triads  —  ISIabinogi  —  Celtic  Language  un- 
mixed with  Latin  or  Saxon  —  Celtic  words  in  English  — 
Roman  period  —  Influence  of  the  Romans  —  Traces  of 
their  language  and  civilization 13 

CHAPTER  n. 

THE  ANGLO-SAXON  OR  GOTHIC  ELEMENT. 

Course  of  Gothic  migrations  —  Different  Branches  of 
the  Gothic  Family  —  Modern  English  —  Difierent  Saxon 
Tribes  represented  among  the  Saxon  Conquerors  of  Eng- 
land —  Dialects  in  England  —  Saxons  embrace  Christian- 
ity —  Character  —  Change  in  this  respect  —  Homogene- 
ousness  of  Language  —  Relation  to  High  and  Low  Ger- 
man —  Vulgar  Language  —  Saxon  use  of  the  Terms  Eng- 
land and  English  —  Opinions  of  Craik  and  Marsh  —  De- 
gree of  Development  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  Language  — 


4  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Literature  in  their  Pagan  State  —  Songs  —  After  the 
Adoption  of  Ciiristianity  —  Bede  —  Alcuin  —  From  Bede 
to  Alfred  —  Anglo-Saxon  Literature  different  from  that 
of  otiior  Nations  —  The  Anglo-Saxon  Chronicle  —  Verse 

—  Beowulf  —  C;i!dnion  —  Longfellow's  Judgment  —  Saxon 
Prose  —  Alfred 22 

CHAPTER   III. 
ANGLO-SAXON  ELEMENT   CONTINUED.  —  LANGUAGE. 

Capabilities  of  the  Language  —  Moral  and  Metaphysical 
Terms  —  Substitution  of  Latin  Roots  for  Saxon  —  Anglo- 
Saxon  Inflections  —  Pronunciation  —  Orthographj — Parts 
of  Speech  —  Inflection  of  Pronouns  —  Verbs  —  Govern- 
ment —  Economy  of  Expression  —  Tendency  to  reject  Li- 
flections  in  passing  over  into  English  —  Simple  Forms  in 
use  by  the  Poets  —  Words  formed  with  the  least  Expense 
of  Sound  —  Words  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  —  An- 
glo-Saxon   Terminations  —  Adjectives  —  Nouns  —  Verbs 

—  Parts  of  Speech  —  AVords  considered  with  reference 
to  their  Meaning  —  Generic  and  Particular  —  Number  of 
Words  of  Anglo-Saxon  Origin  —  M.  Thommercl  —  In 
Common  Use  —  Words  used  by  different  Authors  — 
"  The  Ormulum  "  —  Shakspeare  —  IMilton  —  Marsh's 
Estimates  —  Words  suited  to  Subject-Matter  —  Old  Words 
revived  —  Eeferences 34 

CHAPTER   lY. 

THE  DANISH  ELEMENT.  — THE   NORMANS. 

First  Appearance  of  the  Danes  —  Origin  and  Character  — 
Hate  of  Christians  —  Extent  of  their  Conquests  —  Recog- 
nized by  William  the  Conqueror  —  Become  civilized  — 
Affect  the  Character  of  the  Anglo-Saxons  —  Deepened 
the  Love  of  Maritime  Adventure  —  Nelson  — Language 
as  affected  by  the  Danes  —  Few  Words  introduced  by 
them  —  The  Normans  in  France —  Earl.v  Culture —  Two 
Dialects  of  the  French  —  Arab  Learning  and  Influence 


CONTENTS.  O 

PAGE 

—  The  Norman  Conquest  —  Eadical  Difference  in  Charac- 
ter between  the  Normans  and  the  Saxons,  as  seen  in  later 
times  —  No  attempt  to  extirpate  the  old  Language  — 
Results  of  the  Conquest,  as  summed  up  by  Craik  —  Use 
of  the  Latin,  Norman,  and  Saxon  Languages  —  Earl  of 
Arundel  —  Anglo-Norman  —  Earliest  EngUsh  —  Extent  of 
Norman  Influence  on  the  Language  during  the  first  two 
Centuries  of  Norman  Rule 46 

CHAPTER   V. 

NOE:^L\N  ELEMENT   CONTINUED.  —  EARLY   ENGLISH. 

Gradual  Disuse  of  Norman  French  in  England  —  Statutes 
in  English — Final  Disuse  —  Duration  of  Norman  Influ- 
ence as  a  Distinct  Element  —  Rise  of  a  genuine  English 
Spirit  and  Character —  Gradual  Rise  of  English  Speech  — 
Laj^amon — "The  Ormulum  "  —  Marsh's  Opinion  —  Vo- 
cabulary — First  Step  towards  a  Union  of  the  Eaces  in  the 
time  of  John  —  Condition  in  the  Thirteenth  Century  — 
Bishop  of  Lincoln  —  Alehouse  Rhj'mes  —  An  Intermediate 
Idiom  in  the  large  Towns  —  A  Saxon  Middle-Class  — 
Dramatic  Exhibitions  —  Minstrels  —  Coleridge's  Glossarial 
Index  —  Changes  in  the  Old  Language,  internal ;  Causes 

—  English  instead  of  Norman  for  Historical  Themes  in  the 
Fourteenth  Century  —  Scarcity  of  good  French  —  Resort 
to  native  Authors  —  Their  Character  —  Merry  Tales  —  No 
Uniformity  in  the  New  Language  —  Plastic  Condition  — 
Value  of  the  Services  of  Langlande  and  Chaucer —  Chau- 
cer's Vocabulary,  according  to  Marsh  — Wycliffe  and  his 
School  —  Beginning  of  ]\Iodern  English 60 

CHAPTER  VI. 

NORMAN    ELEMENT    CONTINUED.— LEARNING.— 
LITERATURE. 

William  the  Conqueror  a  Patron  of  Letters  —  Use  of  Latin 
in  the  Schools  —  Large  Attendance  at  the  Universities 
during   the    Thirteenth    Century  —  Latin    Chronicles  — 


6  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

William  of  Malmcsbury  —  Geoffrey  of  Monmouth  — 
Latin  Poetry  —  Miscellaneous  Latin  Literature  —  Richard 
de  Bury  —  Roger  Bacon  —  The  Scholastic  Philosophy  — 
Influence  on  later  English  Writers  —  Theological  Litera- 
ture —  Native  Literature  of  the  Normans  —  At  the  English 
Court  —  The  Language  of  Provence  —  Character  of  the 
Native  Literature,  as  indebted  to  the  Scandinavians  and 
the  Celts  —  Henry  I.  —  ISL-ister  Wace  —  The  Arthurian 
Romance  —  Characters  of  the  Writers  —  The  San  Greal 

—  AValtcr  Mapes  —  Wright's  Opinion  —  Place  and  Time 
of  Composition  of  Romance — Value  —  Transition  from 
Verse  to  Prose —  Chronicles  of  Froissart  —  Lord  Berners' 
Translation  —  Separation  of  the  English  from  the  French 

—  The  Physical  Elements  of  the  National  Character  and 
Language  Complete 72 

CHAPTER  VIL 

EARLY  ENGLISH  LITERATURE. 

Distinct  National  Spirit  and  Language  —  Early  Literary 
Works  —  Layamon  —  Edition  of  Sir  Francis  Madden  — 
Philological  Value  —  Verse  —  "  Ancren  Riwle  "  —  Vo- 
cabulary —  "  The  Ormulum  "  —  Dr.  White's  Edition  — 
Orthography — Traces  of  Norman  Influence  —  Marsh's 
Estimate  of  the  Work  —  The  Proclamation  of  Henry  III. 
— "  The  Romance  of  Alexander  " — "  The  Owl  and  Night- 
ingale "  —  "  Surtees  Psalter  "  —  "  Chronicle  of  Robert  of 
Gloucester  "  —  "  The  Geste  of  Kyng  Horn  "  —  Old  Ser- 
mons from  "  Reliquiae  Antiqua; "  —  Jlost  important  Gram- 
matical Changes  of  the  Thirteenth  Century  —  Vocabu- 
lary according  to  Coleridge's  Glossarial  Index 85 

CHAPTER   Yin. 

ENGLISH  LANGUAGE  IN  THE  FOURTEENTH  CENTURY. 

Rhymed  Chronicle  of  Robert  Mannynge  —  Vocabulary  — 
The  Forms  of  the  Pronouns  —  Relation  to  Ballad  Poetry 

—  Theories  as  to  Robin  Hood  —  Thierry  —  Name  of  a 
Cycle  —  Metrical  Romance  —  Time  and  Popularity —Late 


CONTENTS.  7 

PAGE 

Editions  —  References  —  Influence  on  the  Language  — 
Political  Poems  —  Variety  of  Measure  —  Wright's  Edition 

—  Tendency  to  form  Inflections  —  Example  from  the 
"  Rehquise  Antiquae"  — Date  to  mark  the  Rise  and  De- 
velopment of  a  genuine  English  Language  —  Connection 
with  the  National  Life  —  Sources  whence  Romance  Words 
were  introduced  —  First  English  Poet  —  Lawrence  Minot 

—  Poems  —  Verse  —  Alliteration  falls  into  Disuse  —  Re- 
cent Revival  of  it  —  The  first  great  Prose  Writer  —  Sir 
John  Mandeville  —  Character  of  his  Work  —  Philological 
Value  —  Orthography  —  Robert  Langlande  —  Estimation 
in  which  his  Poem  was  held  —  Verse  —  Spirit  —  Extract 
from  the  Sermon  of  Reason  —  The  Creed  of  "  Piers 
Ploughman." 95 

CHAPTER  IX. 

FOURTEENTH  CENTURY  CONTINUED.  —  WTCLIFFE 
AND    CHAUCER. 

Character  and  Culture  of  John  de  Wycliffe  —  Translation 
of  the  Bible  —  Edition  of  Forshall  and  Madden  —  Refer- 
ence to  Marsh  —  Grammatical  Changes  —  Chaucer  —  As 
a  Literary  Man  —  His  English  Heart  —  Services  to  the 
Language  —  Marsh's  Opinion — Language  of  Chaucer  — 
French  words  employed  —  Chaucer's  Verse  —  The  final  e 

—  Pecuharities  in  the  Forms  of  Verbs  —  General  Simpli- 
fication of  the  Language  —  No  new  Words  from  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  revived  after  this  —  The  Process  of  Dialectic  Re- 
generation —  John  Gower  —  Value  of  his  Works  to  the 
Language  —  The  Prose  of  the  Fourteenth  Century  — 
Chaucer's  Prose  —  Wycliffe  —  Sermon  against  Miracle 
Plays  —  The  Language  now  settled  —  Limit  of  future 
Changes 107 

CHAPTER  X. 

THE  ENGLISH  LANGUAGE  IN  THE  FIFTEENTH  CEN- 
TURY. 
General  Spirit  of  this  century  —  James  I.  of  Scotland  —  Lyd- 
gate  —  Bishop  Pecock  —  Sir  John  Fortescue  —  Malory's 


8  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Morte  Arthur  —  Its  Prose  —  Tlie  Paston  Letters  —  Wil- 
liam Caxton,  tlio  great  Englisli  Printer  —  Cliaracter  of  the 
Works  he  jirinted  — Tlic  Gallicisms  of  his  Style  —  End  of 
Old  English  —  Extract  from  Hallam 116 

CHAPTER  XL 

THE  ENGLISH  LANGUAGE  IN  THE  SIXTEENTH  CEN- 
TURY. 

Causes  contributing  to  the  New  Era  — The  Period  of  the 
Reformation  analogous  to  the  Age  of  Edward  III.  —  Lord 
Bernurs'  Froissart  —  The  Life  of  Edward  V.  and  of  Kicli- 
ard  III.,  by  Sir  Thomas  More  —  Tyndale's  Version  of  the 
New  Testament  —  Based  on  that  of  WyclifTe  —  The  Re- 
formers, Cranmer,  Latimer,  and  Ridley  —  Their  Language 
—  Sir  John  Cheke  and  Roger  Ascham  —  Language  of  most 
Theological  Writers  —  Foreign  Importation  overdone  — 
Reaction  —  Vindex  Anglicus  —  Real  Value  of  the  Addi- 
tions from  Foreign  Sources  —  Words  of  Latin  Derivation 
direct  from  the  Classics  — Formation  of  Words  from  Latin 
Sources  —  Scientific  and  Technical  Terms  —  Farther  Re- 
action —  Union  of  the  Latin  and  Saxon  Elements  —  Study 
of  Words 121 

CHAPTER   Xn. 

THE  SIXTEENTH  CENTURY  CONCLUDED.  —  ITALIAN 
LITERATURE.  —  THE  DRAMA.  —  SPENSER.  —  THE 
SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY. 

Italian  Literature  in  the  Age  of  Edward  III.,  of  Henry 
VIII. —  Nature  of  its  Influence  —  Blank  Verse  —  Pastoral 
Poetry  —  Minor  Poets  of  the  Elizabethan  Era  —  Dramatic 
Literature  —  Aid  to  the  Saxon  portion  of  the  Language  — 
Dramatic  Writers  —  Scholars  — Vocabulary  of  Siiakspeare 

,  as  compared  with  Milton  —  The  Vocabulary  of  Original 
Authors  —  Siiakspeare  in  this  respect  —  Shakspeare's 
Words  the  fit  words  —  Early  Dramatists  —  Spenser  — 
Pecidiarity  of  his  Poetry,  Language  —  Minor  Poets  of  the 
Age :   Warner,  Joseph  Hall,  Chapman,  Daniel,  Donne, 


CONTENTS.  9 

PAGE 

Quarles,  Herbert  —  Standard  Version  of  the  Scriptures  — 
Its  Dialect  —  Influence — English  Liturgy  —  Writers  of 
the  Enghsh  Church  —  Style  —  Wants  of  the  Language  — 
Milton's  Influence  on  the  Language  —  Lord  Bacon  — 
Milton's  Minor  Poems  and  Prose 131 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

CONCLUDING  PERIOD. 

The  French  School — Period  in  England — Dryden — His 
Position  and  Merits  —  Hobbes,  his  Style  —  The  Merits  of 
the  French  School  —  The  Prose  of  the  Essayists,  as  a 
Model  —  Bunyan  —  Izaak  Walton  —  Changes  in  the  Lan- 
guage since  the  opening  of  the  Eighteenth  Century  — 
Defoe  —  Swift  —  Bolingbroke  — Johnson  — Value  of  John- 
son's Labors  —  His  Written  Style  —  The  English  Histo- 
rians —  The  Style  of  Macaulay  —  Causes  of  a  more  Idio- 
matic Style  of  Late  Years  —  Influence  of  German  Litera- 
ture —  The  Language  in  Great  Britain  as  Compared  with 
its  Use  in  the  United  States  —  Differences  —  Cause  — 
Orthographj'  —  Changes  of  Pronimciation  —  Influence  of 
Political  Discussions,  of  the  Clergy  —  Position  and  Fu- 
ture Destiny  of  the  Language 140 


ILLUSTRATIVE    SPECIMENS. 

SIMPLE  ENGLISH,  (Saxon)  :  — 

1.  Saxox  Period  :  —  From  the  Voyage  of  Ohther  in  Al- 

fred's Translation  of  Orosius,  book  i. :  —  before  a.  d. 
900 154 

2.  From   the   latter  portion   of  the    Saxon    Chronicle  :  — 

about  A.  D.  1100 155 

3.  From  the  Anglo-Saxon  Version  of  the  Gospels.     John 

iv.  1-10:  — A.  D.  1100 156 

BROKEN  ENGLISH,  (Semi-Saxon)  :  — 

4.  Semi-Saxon  Period  :  —  Commencement  of  Layamon's 

"  Brut :  "  —  about  a.  d.  1200 158 

5.  Layamon's  Description  of  the  arming  of  Prince  Arthur  160 


10  CONTENTS. 

PAOB 

6.  From  Layamon,  to  show  the  change  in  the  possessive 

case 162 

COMPOUND  ENGLISH :  — 

7.  Early  English  Period:  —  Dedication  of  the  Ormu- 

lum  :  —about  a.  d.  1250  ? 163 

8.  From  tlie  Ormulum  :  —  Typical  meaning  of  Unleavened 

Broad 164 

9.  Proclamation  of  Henry  III.  :-a.  d.  1258 164 

10.  Beginning  of  a  Song  against  the  Iving  of  Almaigne  :  — 

about  A.  D.  1264 167 

11.  Commencement  of  Robert  of  Gloucester's  Chronicle  :  — 

about  A.  D.  1300 168 

12.  Beginning  of  a  Song  on  the  Execution  of  Sir  Simon 

Fraser  :  —  a.  d.  1306 109 

13.  Medical  Recipes  from  Reliquiae  Antiqua;.     From  a  MS. 

of  the  Fourteenth  Century 169 

14.  Beginning  and  end  of  an  Elegy  on  the  death  of  Edward 

I. :  —  A.  D.  1307 170 

15.  From  Robert  de   Brunnc's  Translation   of  Langtoft's 

Chronicle  :  —  about  a.  d.  1340 170 

16.  Middle  English  Period  :  —  From  Minot's  Battle  of 

Halidon  Hill :  —  about  a.  d.  1350 172 

17.  Commencement  of  the  Vision  of  Piers  Ploughman  :  — 

about  a.  d.  1360 172 

18.  From  Piers  Ploughman,  to   show  the   combination  of 

verbs  with  pronouns  :  — Allusion  to  Robin  Ilood. . .   173 

19.  From  Mandevil's  Travels  :  —  about  a.  d.  1370 174 

20.  Mandevil's  Book  authorized  by  the  Pope 175 

21.  The   Fourth   Psalm   from   the   Wycliffite   Version :  — 

Both  Versions  :  —  about  a.  d.  1380 176 

22.  From  Wycliffe's  Translation  of  the  Bible: — about  a.  d. 

1380 177 

23.  From  a  Sermon  against  Miracle-Plays  :  —  Latter  part  of 

the  Fourteenth  Century 179 

24.  From  Trevisa's  Translation  of  Higden's  Polychronicon  : 

—  a.  d.  1385 180 

25.  Beginning  of  the  Reeve's  Tale  from  Chaucer  :  —  about 

A.  D.  1390 181 


CONTENTS.  11 

*  PAGE 

26.  From  the  Parson's   Tale,  (in  Prose),  by  Chaucer :  — 

about  A.  D.  1390 182 

27.  Prayer  of  Chaucer  at  the  end  of  the  Canterbury  Tales.   183 

28.  From  the  Romance  of  King  Alisaunder :  —  about  a.  d. 

1438 184 

29.  From  Lydgate's  Poem  entitled  his  Testament :  —  about 

A.  D.  1450 185 

30.  Paston  Letters  :  —  From  a  Lover  to  his  Mistress  :  —  A.  d. 

14G9 186 

31.  Conclusion  of  Caxton's  English  Translation  of  Higden's 

Polychronicon  :  —  a.  d.  1482 187 

32.  Character  of  Richard  III.,  by  Sir  Thomas  More  :  — 

A.u.  1513 188 

33.  From  the  Prologue  of  Froissart's  Chronicles :  —  Lord 

Berners'  Translation  :  —  a.  d.  1523 189 

34.  Letter  from   Sir  Thomas   More   to  his  Wife  :  —  a.  d. 

1528 190 

35.  From  Tyndal's  Translation  of  the  Bible: — A.  d.  1534 

and  1536 192 

36.  From  Cranmer's  Bible  :  — a.  d.  1539 193 

37.  Sonnet  by  the  Earl  of  Surrey  :  — about  a.  d.  1545 194 

38.  Modern  English  Period  :  —  From  the  Geneva  New 

Testament :  —  a.  d.  1557 195 

39.  Commencement  of  Sackville's  Liduction  in  the  "Mir- 

ror for  Magistrates  : "  —  a.  d.  1559 196 

40.  From  Ascham's  "  Schoolmaster  :  " —  Quick  Wits  :  — 

about  A.  D.  1563 196 

41.  From  the  "  Schole  Master :  "  —  "  Force  of  Example  :  " — 

Roger  Ascham 197 

42.  From  Sidney's  "Apologie  for  Poetrie  :  "  —  about  a.  d. 

1580 198 

43.  From  the  Rheims  New  Testament :  —  a.  d.  1-582 199 

44.  From  Webb's   Discourse  of  English   Poetrie  :  —  a.  d. 

1586 200 

45.  From  Spenser's  "Faerie  Queene  :  "  —  about  a.  d.  1590  202 

46.  From  an  Apologie  of  Poetrie,  by  Sir  John  Harrington  : 

—  A.  d.  1591 202 

47.  From  Spenser's   "  View  of  the  State  of  Ireland  :  "  — 

about  A.  D.  1595 203 


12  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

48.  From  Bacon's  Essays  :  —  On  Studies  :  —  a.  n.  1597 204 

49.  From  the  Authorized  Translation  of  tiie  Bible  :  —  a.  d. 

1611 205 

50.  From  Hooker's  Ecclesiastical  Politic:  —  a.  d.  1617....  206 
61.  From  the  Preface  to  the  Ephemeris  Parliamentaria  :  — 

Fol.  London,  1654   207 

52.  From  Boyer's  History  of  William  III.,  vol.  i.  p.  114  :  — 

London,  1703 208 

53.  From   Sir  William    Temple's  Essay   on  Ancient  and 

Modern  Learning :  —  To   show  the  use   of  Capital 
Letters  in  his  time  :  —  a.  d.  1740 209 


LETTERS. 

I.  Richard,  Earl  of  Cambridge  to   Henry  V.  :  —  a.  d. 

1415 210 

II.  Richard  III.  to  his  Mother  :  —  a.  d.  1484 211 

III.  Lady  Brian,  Governess  of  Queen  Elizabeth  :  —  a.  d. 

1536 212 

IV.  Queen  Elizabeth  to  Mary  Queen  of  Scots: — a.  d. 

1571 213 

V.  Thomas  Lorkin,  Tutor  of  Prince  Henry,  to  Mr.  Adam 

Newton  on  Education  at  Paris  :  —  a.  d.  1600 214 

VI.  Lord  Bacon  on  his  Impeachment:  — a.  d.  1620 215 

VII.  Cromwell  to  the  Lady  Elizabeth  his  wife: — a.  d. 

1651 217 


AN    OUTLINE 


ELEMENTS  OF  THE  ENGLISH  LANGUAGE. 


CHAPTER  L 

CELTIC   AND   ROMAN    ELEMENTS. 

Object  of  the  "Work  —  Physical  and  Intellectual  Elements  of  the 
English  Character  and  Language  —  The  Aryan  Family  of 
Languages  —  Division  —  Period  of  Migration  of  the  Different 
Races  —  The  Old  British  or  Celts  —  Place  —  Contests  with 
Rome  —  Adoption  of  Christianity  —  Struggle  with  the  Sax- 
ons—  Character  —  Influence  on  the  English  Mind  —  Love  of 
Poetry  —  The  Irish  Branch  —  The  Scotch—  Welsh  —  Triads 
—  Mabinogi — Celtic  Language  unmixed  with  Latin  or  Sax- 
on —  Celtic  Words  in  English  —  Roman  Period  —  Influence 
of  the  Romans  —  Traces  of  their  Language  and  Civilization. 

It  is  the  object  of  this  work  to  present  the  elements 
of  the  English  language  in  their  relation  to  the  physical 
and  intellectual  elements  of  English  character.  The 
language  has  been  modified  and  determined  by  all  the 
influences  that  have  entered  into,  and  affected  the  habits 
of  life  and  thought  of  the  people  who  have  used  it.  It 
owes  a  part  of  its  character  to  race,  a  part  to  the  physi- 
cal relations  of  the  countries  where  it  originated  and 
over  which  it  has  spread,  and  a  part  to  the  intellectual 
1 


14  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

and  moral  ideas  it  has  embodied,  whether  of  home  or 
of  foreign  source.  In  the  order  of  nature  as  of  time, 
the  first  tiling  to  be  considered  is  the  element  of  race. 

The  family  of  languages  to  which  the  I^ngli^h,  in  its 
various  elements,  belongs,  has  borne  various  names,  —  as 
Indo-Germanic,  Indo-European,  and  Aryan.  The  first 
two  indicate  the  relationship  existing  between  the  lan- 
guages of  Europe  and  of  India ;  the  last  refers  to  the 
original  seat  of  the  family,  Arya,  or  the  northern  portion 
of  modern  Persia.  From  this  central  point  successive 
mio-rations  of  the  Aryan  family  were  made  to  the  south- 
east into  India,  and  westward  over  Europe,  till  at  length 
the  Aryan  family  of  languages  prevailed,  from  the 
Ganges  on  the  east,  to  the  British  Isles  on  the  west,  — 
from  the  peninsulas  of  the  Mediterranean  to  the  region 
of  the  frozen  north.  As  the  different  tribes  left  the 
common  seat,  they  bore  away  from  the  common  stock  the 
staple  roots  of  the  language,  and  developed  from  them 
new  words  to  suit  the  scenes  through  which  they  passed, 
or  the  countries  they  made  their  home.  The  effects  of 
climate,  of  occupation,  of  different  degrees  and  opportu- 
nities of  culture,  soon  became  expressed  in  language,  still 
plastic  to  every  influence,  till  fixed  in  definite  forms  by 
the  use  of  lettei's  and  a  popular  literature.  Thus  the 
original  language  of  the  Aryan  race  assumed  differ- 
ent forms  and  bore  different  names,  according  to  its  lo- 
cality and  the  manifold  influences  affecting  those  who 
used  it. 

The  following  division  is  that  usually  adopted  by 
grammarians  :  the  Sanscrit  in  India,  where  it  is  still 
preserved  in  the  sacred  books  of  the  native  population, 
and  is  honored  as  the  oldest  daughter  of  the  family  ; 
the  Celtic,  traces  of  which  are  still  to  be  found  in  the 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  15 

British  Isles ;  the  Greek  and  the  Latin,  perhaps  subdi- 
visions of  one  branch  at  some  pre-historic  period  ;  the 
Gothic,  or  as  it  is  sometimes  called,  the  Teutonic  or  Ger- 
manic, the  language  of  the  various  German  tribes  ;  and 
the  Sclavonic  or  Windic,  with  its  subdivisions  of  the 
Lettic,  the  original  language  of  Lithuania  and  a  part  of 
Prussia,  and  the  proper  Sclavonic,  the  language  of  Rus- 
sia, and  of  a  portion  of  the  different  peoples  subject  to 
Austria. 

At  the  present  stage  of  inquiry,  it  is  impossible  to  fix 
with  any  degree  of  precision  upon  the  time  when  the  dif- 
ferent tribes,  represented  by  so  many  different  dialects  or 
languages,  first  became  established  in  Europe.  It  is  only 
within  the  present  century,  and  as  one  of  the  triumphs  of 
philological  study,  that  the  affinity  of  these  so  widely- 
scattered  and  so  dissimilar  tribes  has  been  recognized  ; 
many  important  questions  still  wait  a  decision,  and  many 
conclusions,  now  deemed  certain,  may  be  modified  by 
more  extended  or  careful  investigation.  It  will  be  suf- 
ficient for  our  present  purpose  to  give  only  the  main  out- 
lines, on  which  there  is  a  general  agreement. 

For  a  more  detailed  statement  see  "  Max  MuUer's 
Survey  of  Languages,"  "  Dwight's  Modern  Philology," 
"  Harrison  on  the  English  Language." 

The   Old  British  or   Celtic  Element. 

The  Celtic  tribes  once  occupied  a  large  share  of 
western  Europe,  including  northern  Spain,  Italy,  Switz- 
erland, Gaul,  and  the  British  Isles.  They  are  supposed 
to  have  entered  Europe  as  early  at  least  as  the  twelfth 
century,  b.  c,  and  perhaps  earlier.  In  the  days  of  their 
prosperity  they  threatened  the  destruction  of  Grecian  and 


16  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

Roman  civilization.  One  of  their  roving  hordes  settled 
down  in  a  part  of  Asia  Minor,  -which  afterwards  bore  the 
name  Galatia.  After  a  desperate  struggle,  their  power 
was  broken  by  the  Roman  arms,  first  in  Gaul  and  after- 
wards in  Britain,  in  the  century  before  the  Christian  era. 
On  the  Continent  they  seem  to  have  submitted  to  the 
language  and  institutions  of  their  conquerors,  and  ere- 
long to  have  become  blended  with  them.  At  a  later 
period  they  mingled  their  blood  and  their  intellectual 
characteristics  with  the  German  tribes  that  successively 
overran  their  country,  and  lastly  with  the  ^Northmen,  — 
the  future  conquerors  of  England. 

In  Britain,  though  they  adopted  Christianity  and 
many  institutions  of  social  life  from  the  Romans,  they 
never  became  blended  with  them.  The  Romans  held 
the  country  by  an  array  of  occupation,  and  when  they 
withdrew,  the  country  they  had  occupied  fell  a  prey  to 
the  Saxons.  The  Britons,  however,  did  not  submit  with- 
out a  long  and  obstinate  contest,  commemorated  in  after- 
days  through  the  patriotic  legends  of  Arthur,  one  of  their 
gallant  leaders,  and  his  no  less  gallant  companions  of  the 
Round  Table.  A  few  maintained  their  independence, 
amid  the  fastnesses  of  "Wales,  down  to  the  thirteenth 
century.  Remnants,  also,  of  this  once  widely-scattered 
people  are  still  to  be  found  among  the  native  population 
of  Brittany,  Ireland,  and  the  Highlands  of  Scotland, 
where,  in  the  modern  Erse,  or  Gaelic,  the  original  lan- 
guage of  the  Celts  is  still  in  some  measure  preserved. 

The  Celts  were  quite  unlike  the  other  peoples  with 
Avhom  they  came  in  contact,  both  in  spirit  and  in  lan- 
guage. They  possessed  a  lively  imagination,  and  an 
ardent  temperament,  but  they  were  deficient  in  steadiness 
of  purpose  and  persistent  will.     They  lacked  the  enter- 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE,  17 

prise  and  the  hardihood  both  of  the  Eomans  and  the 
Germans,  and  were  consequently  obliged  to  give  way  to 
both.  Their  peculiar  traits  of  character  have  been  man- 
ifested in  their  preference  for  the  forms  and  ceremonial 
of  the  Romish  religion  to  the  simpler  rites  of  Protestant 
Christianity  ;  in  their  passion  for  arms,  pomp,  and  dis- 
play generally  ;  in  the  gallantry  and  dash  that  charac- 
terize the  French,  Irish,  and  the  Scotch  Highlander,  as 
contrasted  with  the  obstinate  endurance  of  the  English 
soldier  :  —  and  for  the  imaginative  element  they  have  con- 
tributed to  English  literature,  to  its  oratory,  and  its 
poetry.  If  we  were  to  strike  from  the  records  of  Eng- 
lish literature  and  arms  the  names  of  men  of  Celtic 
blood,  it  would  be  at  the  sacrifice  of  many  of  those  most 
honored  for  their  heroism,  and  most  highly  esteemed  for 
their  influence  upon  the  English  mind.  From  this  point 
of  view  the  Celtic  population  of  the  British  Isles  is  worthy 
of  no  common  regard.  The  bitter  animosity  of  rival  races 
during  the  earlier  history  of  the  English  language,  in  its 
formation  period,  prevented  the  interchange  of  the  forms 
of  speech,  but  has  not  prevented  in  later  times  the  com- 
mingling of  blood,  —  of  the  warm  blood  and  lively  imag- 
ination of  the  Celt  with  the  solidity  and  the  soberer 
virtues  of  the  Saxon. 

Thierry  ^  says  of  the  ancient  Britons,  or  Celts,  that 
they  lived  on  poesy.  The  expression  is  not  too  strong. 
In  their  political  axioms  which  are  still  preserved,  they 
place  the  bard  by  the  side  of  the  agriculturist  and  the 
artisan,  as  one  of  the  pillars  of  social  life.  Their  bards 
had  but  one  theme,  —  the  destiny  of  their  country,  its 
misfortunes  and  its  hopes.  The  nation,  poetic  in  its  turn, 
eagerly  caught  up  their  fictions,  and  gave  the  most  fanci- 

^  Cctiquete  de  T Anghterre,  voL  i.  p.  103. 


18  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

ful  meanings  to  the  simplest  words.  The  longings  of  the 
bard  became  promises  of  the  future,  and,  cheered  by  his 
prophecies,  they  endured  present  distress  as  a  transient 
evil,  waiting  the  time  when  they  should  recover  their  lost 
possessions  and  rights  to  the  soil. 

As  they  never  possessed  letters,  but  rather  despised 
them  till  a  late  period,  they  had  no  way  of  preserving 
their  laws,  history,  and  popular  songs,  save  as  they  were 
handed  down  from  one  generation  to  another  by  their 
poets.  Hence  the  very  scanty  knowledge  we  possess 
of  their  manners,  usages,  and  literature,  and  the  little 
influence  they  have  exerted  on  subsequent  times,  except 
by  the  commingling  of  their  blood. 

The  Irish  branch  is  the  most  remarkable  for  its  liter- 
ary treasures.  These  are  said  to  consist  of  legends,  prose 
chronicles,  and  the  songs  of  their  bards.  The  earliest 
relics  of  the  Celtic  literature  of  Scotland  are  in  metre, 
but  of  less  value,  despite  the  efforts  of  Macpherson  and 
others  to  invest  them  with  a  mythical  glory.  The  Welsh 
bards  have  a  claim  on  our  admiration  as  the  champions 
and  martyrs  of  national  independence.  The  singular 
pieces  called  the  "  Triads  "  present  us,  regularly  disposed 
in  groups  of  three,  a  collection  of  historical  facts,  ethical 
and  legal  maxims,  and  a  variety  of  traditional  lore.  But 
a  few  only  of  their  metrical  productions  can  be  referred 
to  a  period  earlier  than  the  sixth  century.  The  most 
belong  to  the  later  days  of  their  independence,  and  com- 
memorate the  calamities  of  their  race.  Their  Mabinogi, 
or  "Tales  of  Youth,"  were  a  worthy  contribution  to 
the  Romance  literature  of  the  Middle  Ages,  resting  upon 
the  traditions  of  a  rude  and  early  generation.^  But  it 
was  by  other  works,  and  especially  by  the  legends  of 

1  Spalding's  English  Literature,  pp.  31,  32. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  19 

Merlin  and  Arthur,  that  the  Celtic  imagination  was  to 
exert  the  greatest  influence  upon  the  literature  of  Europe 
during  successive  centuries,  —  an  influence  felt  to  the 
present  time. 

It  is  not  strange  that  a  people  so  radically  distinct  in 
spirit  and  character  should  have  had  so  little  affinity 
with  the  stern  practical  spirit  of  the  Romans,  and  later, 
of  the  Saxon  race.  The  grammatical  foi-ms  of  these  lan- 
guages were  never  interchanged,  and  but  comparatively 
few  words  from  their  vocabularies.  And  these  few  were 
commonly  such  names  of  objects  as  were  new  to  the  re- 
spective languages  that  adopted  them. 

The  difference  in  the  character  of  the  Celts  from  their 
neighbors  was  expressed  in  no  less  marked  differences 
of  language.  Its  system  of  inflections  was  much  more 
fully  developed  than  the  Saxon.  The  moods  and  tenses 
of  the  verb  were  marked  by  peculiar  inflections,  with 
little  if  any  dependence  on  auxiliary  verbs.  There  was 
a  great  variety  of  forms  to  their  pronouns  to  express  the 
gi'eatest  number  of  relations.  Add  to  this  a  flexibility  in 
the  change  of  consonants  to  form  new  combinations  of 
words,  and  it  is  obvious  that  so  highly  complicated  a  lan- 
guage must  have  served  as  a  great  barrier  to  intercourse 
with  their  neighbors.  In  view,  then,  of  the  character 
and  language  of  the  Celts,  we  need  not  be  surprised  at 
the  little  influence  they  exerted,  save  in  the  particular 
directions  already  indicated.  Their  influence  upon  the 
English  language  directly,  with  the  exception  of  adding  a 
few  words  to  its  vocabulary,  was  really  nothing. 

The  words  of  Celtic  origin  now  in  use  are  mainly  con- 
fined to  names  of  places  and  to  a  few  physical  objects. 
The  old  British  word  dim,  a  rock,  changed  to  do7i,  in 
the  termination  of  many  English  and  American  names 


20  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

of  towns  and  cities,  recalls  that  rude  state  of  society, 
when  the  fortress  upon  the  rock  or  the  beetling  crag 
furnished  the  only  security  for  life  or  possessions.  It 
is  the  conclusion  of  some  of  the  best  writers  on  the  sub- 
ject that  the  oldest  topographical  nomenclature  in  Brit- 
ain is  Celtic.^  Inquirers  are  by  no  means  agi'eed  as  to 
the  number  of  words  on  other  subjects,  some  reckoning 
them  by  hundreds  and  even  thousands,  while  others 
would  reduce  them  to  a  comparatively  small  number. 
Among  those  commonly  cited  as  of  Celtic  origin  are  the 
following :  basket,  harrow,  button,  cart,  crook,  gown,  pan, 
solder,  wain  ;  all  of  which  Mr.  Marsh  has  shown  to  be 
derived  from  other  sources,  or  at  least  to  have  a  com- 
mon existence  in  other  languages.  "  The  probability  is 
that  most  of  the  words  in  question  belong  to  an  earlier 
period  of  human  speech  than  that  of  the  existence  of 
any  language  identifiable  as  distinctly  Celtic,  Gothic,  or 
Italic."  2 

The  Roman  Element. 

The  term  Roman  is  here  used  to  mark  the  influence 
exerted  on  the  English  character  and  language  by  the 
Roman  occupation  of  Britain  for  five  centuries,  as  dis- 
tinguished from  that  of  the  Latin  language  and  litera- 
ture of  a  later  date.  The  period  under  review  begins 
with  the  invasion  of  Julius  CiEsar,  55  B.C.  and  closes 
with  the  year  449  A.  D.,  the  year  of  the  first  German 
immigration  into  the  Island,  though  the  Roman  do- 
minion ceased  to  be  acknowledged  as  early  as  the  year 
409  A.D. 

The  influence  of  the  Romans  upon  the  language  and 

1  Craik's  Outlines  of  the  History  of  the  English  Language,  p.  5. 

2  Second  Series  of  Lectures,  p.  SG. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  21 

character  of  the  subsequent  periods  of  English  history 
was  no  greater  than  that  of  the  original  Celtic  popula- 
tion. No  Breto-Roraan  dialect  was  ever  developed  akin 
to  the  Romance  languages  of  the  Continent.  The  language 
of  the  Romans  disappeared  with  their  legions,  or  was 
immediately  supplanted  by  that  of  the  Saxon  invaders. 
And  though  we  must  suppose  some  degree  of  Roman 
civilization  to  have  been  obtained  during  this  long  period, 
yet  we  have  no  certain  information  as  to  the  prevalence 
o£  the  Latin  language.  Whatever  Roman  colonists  may 
have  settled  in  the  country  were  probably  soon  lost  in 
the  surrounding  population.  The  only  traces  of  the  Ro- 
man dominion  surviving  in  the  language  are  found  in 
the  names  of  places,  —  as  the  terminations  chester,  cester, 
in  Dorchester,  Leicester,  from  castra,  a  camp  ;  and  coin 
in  Lincoln,  from  colonia  —  terms  revealing  the  very  su- 
perficial character  of  Roman  influence  upon  the  country. 
The  vital  organizing  force  of  the  Roman  character  was 
wellnigh  lost.  Yet  we  should  not  be  in  haste  to  say 
that  we  have  received  no  advantage  from  the  sway  of 
the  Romans  in  England.  The  arts  and  the  civilization 
of  Rome  ever  followed  in  the  train  of  her  armies,  and 
the  Britons  were  no  exception  to  their  influence,  not- 
withstanding the  hatred  of  race,  and  unlikeness  of  lan- 
guage and  character.  "Whatever  of  civilization  was  at- 
tained was  not  lost  upon  men  of  so  intensely  practical 
a  spirit  as  our  Saxon  ancestors,  and  could  not  have  failed 
to  secure  in  them  the  earlier  adoption  of  the  settled  order 
and  habits  of  civilized  life. 


22  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 


CHAPTER  11. 

THE    ANGLO-SAXON   OR   GOTHIC   ELEMENT. 

Course  of  Gothic  Migrations  —  Different  Branches  of  the  Gothic 
Family  —  Modern  English  —  Different  Saxon  Tribes  repre- 
sented among  the  Saxon  Conquerors  of  England  —  Dialects 
in  England  —  Saxons  embrace  Christianity  —  Character  — 
Change  in  this  respect  —  Homogeneousness  of  Language  — 
Relation  to  High  and  Low  German  —  Vulgar  Language  — 
Saxon  —  Use  of  the  Terms  England  and  English  —  Opinions 
of  Craik  and  Marsh  —  Degree  of  Development  of  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  Language  —  Literature  in  their  Pagan  State  —  Songs  — 
After  the  Adoption  of  Christianity  —  Bede — Alcuin — From 
Bede  to  Alfred  —  Anglo-Saxon  Literature  different  from  that 
of  other  Nations  —  The  Anglo-Saxon  Chronicle  —  Verse  — 
Beowulf —  Csedmon  —  Longfellow's  Judgment  —  Saxon  Prose 
—  Alfred. 

The  different  tribes  that,  under  the  name  of  Saxons, 
Jutes,  or  Angles,  overrun  the  most  of  South  Britain 
during  the  fifth  and  sixth  centuries  of  our  era,  belonged 
to  the  great  Gothic  family  of  nations.  They  are  sup- 
posed to  have  entered  Europe  to  the  north  of  the  Black 
Sea,  and  following  the  course  of  the  Danube,  to  have 
taken  possession  of  the  countries  drained  by  its  waters 
and  the  region  adjacent  to  the  Baltic  and  the  North 
Seas,  including  the  Scandinavian  peninsula.  This  fam- 
ily was  early  divided  into  three  great  divisions :  the 
High  German   in   the  southern   portion,  represented  in 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  23 

the  present  language  of  Germany ;  Low  German  in  the 
north,  on  the  lowlands  about  the  Elbe  and  on  the  North 
Sea,  represented  in  the  modern  Dutch  and  the  old 
Saxon ;  and  the  Scandinavian,  best  known  in  the  Scan- 
dinavian peninsula  and  in  Iceland.  Modern  English  is 
the  result  of  a  fusion  of  the  various  dialects  of  the  Low 
German  with  the  incorporation  of  some  foreign  elements, 
as  the  Celtic  and  the  Latin. 

Much  as  in  later  times  with  the  colored  races  on  the 
coast  of  Guinea,  a  number  of  small  tribes  or  frag- 
ments of  tribes  were  crowded  about  the  mouth  of  the 
Elbe,  and  into  the  low  grounds  of  what  is  now  known  as 
Holland,  Northern  Hanover,  and  Denmark.  Traces  of 
these  are  manifest  in  the  great  number  of  dialects  that  still 
prevail  in  that  neighborhood  and  in  the  evidently  compos- 
ite character  of  the  so-called  Anglo-Saxon  language  of 
Britain.  It  is  possible  that  the  dialectic  peculiarities 
noticeable  in  dilTei'ent  parts  of  England  to  this  day  may 
in  part  be  due  to  the  same  source.^  Wellnigh  driven 
into  the  sea  by  their  more  powerful  neighbors,  they  had 
learned  to  make  use  of  it  as  a  means  of  securing  a  sub- 
sistence, and  developed  a  spirit  of  enterprise  and  daring 
that  prepared  them  for  the  conquest  of  Britain.  The 
acknowledged  presence  of  the  Jutes  would  lead  us  to 
expect  adventurers  from  Scandinavia  as  well  as  other 
German  tribes,  attracted  by  the  hope  of  plunder  or  of 
bettering  their  condition.  The  Britons  were  either 
driven  away  or  exterminated.  The  invaders  introduced 
a  new  language,  new  institutions,  and  a  new  religion ; 

1  Note.  —  The  stranger,  in  merely  going  from  Liverpool  to  London, 
if  he  takes  one  of  the  cheap  accommodation  trains,  will  not  fail  to 
observe  a  great  difference  of  dialect  in  the  different  sections  through 
which  he  passes. 


24  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

and  though  they  embraced  Christianity  about  the  close  of 
the  sixth  century,  they  accepted  it  not  from  the  former 
occupants  of  the  soil,  but  from  missionaries  sent  among 
them  from  Rome. 

Some  of  the  same  elements  of  character  that  have  been 
displayed  in  their  descendants  on  both  hemispheres  are 
worthy  of  note :  the  enterprise  and  daring  that  shrink 
at  no  obstacles,  physical  or  moral,  in  the  way  of  their 
progress  or  aggrandizement,  and  the  love  of  law  and 
order  at  home,  —  at  once  aggressive  and  conservative. 
These  two  elements  are  the  prime  constituents  of  the 
foreign  and  domestic  policy  of  the  Saxon  race. 

Yet  the  invaders  seem  soon  to  have  settled  down  to 
the  quiet  enjoyment  of  their  new  homes,  and  to  have 
relapsed  into  an  inglorious  ease,  greatly  in  contrast  with 
their  earlier  character.  The  general  inactivity  and  ig- 
norance that  prevailed  at  the  opening  of  Alfred's  career 
are  very  remarkable,  and  furnish  little  occasion  of  glory- 
ing in  our  Anglo-Saxon  ancestry.  The  new  life  he 
awakened  soon  passed  away.  His  people  submitted 
first  to  their  kinsmen,  the  Danes,  and  later  to  the  Nor- 
mans, who  were  destined  to  infuse  new  life  and  activity 
into  the  Saxon  character,  and  by  the  infusion  of  their 
blood  and  intellectual  traits  to  give  rise  to  a  new  nation- 
ality.i 

However  great  the  number  of  dialects  among  the 
original  invaders  of  England,  their  language  soon  at- 
tained a  fair  degree  of  homogeneousness,  yet  never 
sufficiently  so  to  conceal  the  diversity  of  its  oi'igin.  This 
appears  in  the  variations  of  inflection  and  orthography 
to  be  observed  in  diflferent  writers  and  in  the  same 
writer  at  different  times.  "  Its  syntax  is  irregular  and 
1  See  Marsh,  Third  Lectur  ,  Second  Series. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  25 

discrepant ;  and  though  both  its  grammar  and  its  vocab- 
ulary connect  it  most  nearly  with  the  low  or  Plat-Deutsrh 
branch  of  the  German,  yet  it  has  grammatical  forms  as 
well  as  verbal  combinations  and  vocables  which  indicate 
now  a  relationship  to  High  German,  and  now  to  Scandi- 
navian, not  to  speak  of  Celtic  roots  which  it  may  have 
borrowed  from  the  Britons,  or  may  have  received,  at  an 
earlier  period,  from  the  ancient  fountain  of  Indo-European 
speech  whence  the  Celtic  and  the  Gothic  as  well  as  the 
Romance  and  Hellenic  languages  of  Europe  are  theoret- 
ically considered  to  have  flowed.  In  short  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  was  much  such  a  language  as  it  might  be  sup- 
posed would  result  from  a  fusion  of  the  old  Saxon  with 
smaller  proportions  of  High  German,  Scandinavian,  and 
even  Celtic  and  Sclavonic  elements ;  and  it  bears  nearly 
the  same  relation  to  those  ingredients  that  modern  Eng- 
lish bears  to  its  own  constituents,  though  indeed  no  single 
influence  was  exerted  upon  it  so  disturbing  in  character  as 
the  Norman  French  has  proved  to  our  present  tongue."  ^ 
These  peculiarities  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  language  show 
plainly  enough  the  diversity  of  origin  among  those  that 
finally  united  in  using  it.  In  the  want  of  any  trustworthy 
historical  proof,  the  attempt  has  been  made  to  determine 
the  precise  locality  of  the  sevei'al  tribes  from  the  several 
dialects  still  existing,  but  the  results  are  not  altogether  sat- 
isfactory. It  is  probable,  however,  that  some  remnants  of 
the  original  language  may  still  be  found  the  least  changed 
among  the  peasantry  in  some  of  the  rural  districts  of  Eng- 
land. Devoted  to  agricultural  pursuits,  having  till  re- 
cently but  little  communication  with  other  parts  of  the 
country,  strongly  conservative  in  their  feelings  and  habits, 
they  would  naturally  preserve  more  of  the  ancient  idiom 
1  Marsh,  Second  Series,  p.  55. 


26  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

in  their  ordinary  horae-speecli.  What  is  sometimes 
called  vulgar  language  —  the  terms  and  phrases  in  use 
among  our  poor  and  less  educated  classes  —  claims  our 
respect  from  its  more  direct  descent  from  our  Anglo- 
Saxon  ancestors,  and  from  its  power  of  expression.  It 
has  been  remarked  by  Bosworth,^  that  in  every  province 
of  England  "  some  streamlets  flow  down  from  the  foun- 
tain-head, retaining  their  original  purity  and  flavor, 
though  not  now  relished  by  fastidious  palates."  And 
it  is  from  these  sources  that  of  late  years  many  choice 
terms  have  been  revived,  adding  to  the  freshness  and 
force  of  the  language  now  in  use. 

The  terms  England  and  English  do  not  appear  to 
have  been  employed  to  designate  the  country  and  the 
people  or  language  till  some  time  in  the  ninth  century, 
and  then  to  have  been  first  used  by  foreigners.  Though 
Alfred  and  some  other  writers  of  the  time  call  their  lan- 
guage English,  it  seems  wiser  to  retain  the  name  Anglo- 
Saxon,  and  to  apply  the  name  English  to  the  language 
now  in  use.  The  languages  are  neither  the  same  in 
syntax,  nor  in  their  vocabularies ;  nor  are  the  English 
strictly  speaking  of  the  same  blood  as  the  men  who  used 
the  Anglo-Saxon,  but  have  a  blood,  a  character,  and  a 
language,  the  result  of  the  commingling  of  different  tribes 
and  different  languages. 

Of  the  two  best  writers  on  the  early  history  of  the 
language  and  literature,  Craik  and  Marsh,  the  latter 
adheres  to  the  usual  designations,  Anglo-Saxon  for  the 
earlier  period,  and  English  for  the  later ;  but  Craik, 
singularly  enough  after  what  would  seem  conclusive 
proof  for  agreeing  with  Marsh,  uses  the  term  English 
throughout.  "  As  the  case  stands,  the  English  of  the 
1  Introduction  to  Anglo-Saxon  Dictionary. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  27 

ninth  century  is  one  language,  and  the  English  of  the 
nineteenth  century  another.  They  differ  at  least  as 
much  as  the  Italian  differs  from  the  Latin  or  as  English 
differs  from  the  German.  The  most  familiar  acquain- 
tance with  the  one  leaves  the  other  unintelligible 

The  one  may  have  grown  out  of  the  other,  and  no  doubt 
has  done  so  at  least  in  part  or  in  the  main ;  but  in  fact 
also  the  modern  language  is  of  quite  distinct  stock  from 
the  ancient.  Of  English  literature  and  the  English  lan- 
guage, commonly  so  called,  the  language  and  literature 
of  the  Angles  and  Saxons  before  the  twelfth  century 
make  no  proper  part."^ 

Whatever  may  have  been  the  nature  and  capabilities 
of  the  Anglo-Saxon  tongue,  as  regards  derivation  and 
composition,  and  the  expression  of  the  most  varied  forms 
of  thought,  yet  it  is  certain  that  these  capabilities  were 
never  developed.  It  is  a  dead  language,  and,  unlike  the 
classic  languages  of  Greece  and  Rome,  is  too  rude,  too 
fragmentary,  too  irregular  to  be  revived.  "  It  is  intelli- 
gible, and  that  is  all.  What  is  written  in  it  can  in  a  cer- 
tain sense  be  read,  but  not  so  as  to  bring  out  any  artistic 
element,  except  of  the  most  dubious  and  unsatisfl^ctory  kind. 
If  it  is  not  literally  dumb,  its  voice  has,  for  us  of  the 
present  day,  entirely  lost  its  music.  When  it  can  be  dis- 
tinguished from  prose  at  all,  it  is  only  by  certain  marks 
or  characteristics  which  may  indeed  be  perceived  by  the 
eye,  or  counted  on  the  fingers,  but  which  have  no  expres- 
sion that  excites  in  us  any  mental  emotion.  In  respect 
of  everything  else  appertaining  to  the  soul  of  the  lan- 
guage, our  understanding  of  it  is  about  equally  imperfect. 
The  consequence  is  that,  although  it  can  be  translated,  it 

1  Craik's  History  of  the  English  Language  and  Literature,  vol.  i.  pp. 
3G,  37. 


28  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

cannot  be  written.  And  as  to  translations  from  this  lan- 
guage into  modern  English  verse,  nobody  can  say,  except 
in  reference  to  palpable  points  of  right  or  wrong  in  gram- 
mar, whether  they  are  well  or  ill  done.  The  language, 
though  so  far  in  our  hands  as  to  admit  of  being  analyzed 
in  grammars,  and  packed  up  in  dictionaries,  is  not  recov- 
erable in  such  a  degree  as  to  make  it  possible  to  pronounce 
with  certainty  whether  anything  written  in  it  is  artisti- 
cally good  or  bad."  ^ 

The  literature  of  the  Anglo-Saxons  has  had  almost 
no  influence  upon  subsequent  times,  —  none  whatever,  it 
may  safely  be  said,  upon  the  course  of  English  thought, 
or  as  an  element  in  it,  —  unless  it  be  proved  that  Milton 
was  indebted  to  Cogdmon  for  some  suggestions  in  the 
rough  which  he  developed  in  the  "  Paradise  Lost."  But 
there  is  really  no  more  agreement  here  than  what  the  sub- 
ject would  naturally  occasion  in  poetic  minds. 

But  little  as  has  been  the  influence  of  this  literature, 
and  crude  as  are  most  of  the  conceptions  of  all  the  lead- 
ing questions  of  life,  government,  morals,  social  order,  or 
religion,  and  w^orthless  as  are  the  views  expressed  in 
science  or  history,  we  may  still  regard  it  with  something 
of  reverence,  as  the  record  of  the  thoughts  and  feelings 
of  a  brave  and  noble -hearted  people.  The  fragments 
that  have  come  down  to  us  are  really  typical,  after  all,  of 
the  measure  of  intellectual  life  attained. 

Of  the  literary  compositions  of  the  Anglo-Saxons  in 
their  Pagan  state  we  know  very  little.  The  Germans 
had  their  songs,  and  it  is  to  be  supposed  that  the  Saxons 
were  not  behind  other  tribes.  In  fact,  we  find  Edgar, 
one  of  their  kings,  after  the  introduction  of  Christianity, 
prohibiting  the  use  of  heathen  songs  at  festivals.  From 
1  Craik,  Abridged. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  29 

the  admittance  of  heathen  traditions  in  their  earlier  pro- 
fessed Christian  poems,  we  may  fairly  conclude  that  the 
old  Saxon  gleemen  sung  the  deeds  of  heroes,  victorious 
odes,  and  death-songs,  much  like  other  minstrels  of  bar- 
barous periods. 

It  is  usual,  however,  to  connect  the  rise  of  Anglo- 
Saxon  literature,  with  the  introduction  of  Christianity, 
about  the  close  of  the  sixth  century.  Literature  was 
chiefly  cultivated  by  the  religious  orders,  using  for  this 
purpose  the  Latin  rather  than  the  native  language. 
Thus  two  literatures  may  be  said  to  have  grown  up  to- 
gether, —  a  learned  literature  in  Latin,  addressed  to  the 
learned,  lay  and  ecclesiastical,  both  at  home  and  abroad, 
which  contains  the  theology  and  ecclesiastical  history  of 
the  time ;  and  a  national,  popular  literature,  entirely  in 
the  popular  tongue.  The  learned  literature  was  worthily 
represented  by  Bede,  —  usually  called  the  "  venerable 
Bede,"  —  still  valued  for  his  ecclesiastical  and  other  his- 
torical matter,  who  flourished  at  the  beginning  of  the 
eighth  century ;  and  by  Adhelm  and  Alcuin,  though  the 
latter,  after  receiving  his  education  at  York,  wrote  and 
lived  under  the  dominion  of  Charlemagne.  To  Alcuin, 
Guizot  bears  the  following  testimony :  "  In  him,  at 
length,  commenced  the  alliance  of  those  two  elements  of 
which  the  modern  mind  had  so  long  borne  the  incoherent 
impress,  —  antiquity  and  the  church,  —  the  admiration, 
the  taste,  the  regret,  shall  I  call  it,  for  Pagan  literature, 
and  the  sincerity  of  Christian  faith,  the  zeal  to  sound  its 
mysteries,  and  to  defend  its  power."  ^  It  is  certainly  to 
be  regretted  that  these  really  eminent  classical  scholars 
and  men  of  real  abihty  did  not  devote  their  energies 
to  developing  the   powers  of  their   native   tongue,   like 

1  Gvilization  of  France,  vol.  iii.  p.  54.     (Am.  edition.) 
2 


30  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

Dante  and  Chaucer,  of  a  later  day,  in  tlieir  respective 
lansua^res. 

For  tlie  next  century  and  a  half,  or  from  the  age  of 
Bede  to  that  of  Alfred,  the  latter  portion  of  the  ninth 
century,  we  find  little  evidence  of  anything  worthy  the 
name  of  erudition ;  and  Alfred  had  to  undertake  a  task 
almost  like  that  of  instructing  a  wholly  ignorant  people. 
His  practical  mind,  however,  was  by  no  means  restricted 
to  his  Latin  studies,  and  it  is  as  a  Saxon  scholar,  faithful 
to  his  native  tongue,  and  untiring  in  his  use  of  it  to  pro- 
mote the  welfare  of  his  people,  that  he  is  most  deserving 
of  notice. 

The  native  literature  of  the  Anglo-Saxons  differs  in 
many  respects  from  that  of  other  nations.  They  paid 
little  regard  to  early  legends  or  traditions.  They  cannot 
be  said  to  have  had  any  historical  literature  at  all,  save  dry 
chronological  records  of  some  few  of  the  more  important 
facts  of  their  history,  —  nothing  fitted  to  give  us  an  ad- 
equate notion  of  their  modes  of  life,  habits,  and  usages. 
Pauli  1  is  of  the  opinion  that  the  Anglo-Saxon  chronicles 
were  first  begun  under  Alfred,  and  that  their  reckoning 
began  soon  after  A.  D.  890.  They  were  composed  on  the 
Latin  model,  and  were  made  up  of  materials  of  all  kinds. 
They  were  originated  at  a  time  when  Alfred  and  his 
contemporaries  were  endeavoring  to  improve  their  native 
language.  There  is  in  them  little  or  nothing  of  the 
merely  fanciful  or  imaginative,  that  characterizes  so  much 
of  the  early  literature  of  other  nations,  but  a  remarkable 
adherence  to  fact,  —  to  matters  of  pi-actical  concern,  —  to 
the  prose,  rather  than  to  the  poetry  of  life.  Such  imag- 
ination as  there  is,  however,  is  put  to  a  truer  use,  and  is 
made  to  serve  the  practical  interests  of  truth.  The 
1  Life  of  Alfred,  p.  6.    (Bohn  Library.) 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  31 

Anglo-Saxon  writers  preferred  to  poetize  moral  and  re- 
ligious maxims  or  doctrines,  and  practical  information 
for  the  benefit  of  their  fellow -men.  This  was  due  in 
part,  of  course,  to  the  fact  that  the  literature,  such  as  it 
w^as,  was  cultivated  by  men  devoted  to  the  interests  of 
the  Church.  Hence  their  paraphrases  of  the  Scripture, 
their  homilies,  and,  later,  their  version  of  the  four  Gos- 
pels, in  the  native  tongue. 

Anglo-Saxon  verse  is  usually  made  up  of  short  ex- 
clamatory lines,  whose  rhythm  theoretically  depends  on 
alliteration  and  accent  of  the  more  important  words  and 
syllables,  while  the  omission  of  particles  tends  to  give  it 
vivacity  and  energy.  Other  peculiarities  of  style  are 
the  ellipses,  the  inversions,  bold  transitions,  abundant  and 
often  obscure  metaphors.  These  features  are  not  peculiar 
to  the  Anglo-Saxons,  but  are  derived  from  their  Conti- 
nental ancestors. 

The  poems  referring  to  the  earlier  or  heathen  times 
remained  unwritten,  and  were  handed  down  in  popular 
song,  till  the  time  of  Alfred.  These  fragments,  for  the 
most  part,  belonged  to  the  great  epic  cycle,  which  was 
the  common  property  of  the  Germanic  races.  And  it  is 
probable  that  most  of  the  vague  accounts  of  the  deeds  of 
their  famous  men  had  also  been  sung  by  the  wandering 
Scalds  of  the  north.  The  origin  of  the  Christian  Anglo- 
Saxon  poetry,  on  the  contrary,  belongs  to  the  age  of  Al- 
fred, and  is  due  to  his  influence  upon  the  thought  and 
sentiment  of  his  people.^  The  principal  historical  poem, 
Beowulf,  belongs  to  a  period  prior  to  the  invasion  of 
England,  and  is  supposed  to  be  of  Scandinavian  origin, 
partly  because  of  its  allusions  and  resemblance  to  the 
Norse-Sagas,  and  partly  because  of  its  unlikeness  to  the 
1  Pauli's  Alfred,  p.  166. 


32  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

general  tone  and  spirit  of  recognized  Anglo-Saxon  pro- 
ductions.^ The  only  other  long  work  in  verse  is  the 
metrical  paraphrase  of  Scripture  history,  by  Caedmon, 
recorded  by  Bede  to  have  lived  in  the  seventh  century  ;  but 
the  work  is  said  by  Craik  to  be  merely  a  collection  of 
separate  Scripture  narratives,  "  mostly  paraphrased  from 
the  book  of  Genesis,  j^ossibly  by  various  writers,  and  cer- 
tainly of  much  later  date."  A  few  other  smaller  pieces 
are  extant,  not  deficient  in  spirit  and  vigor  of  expression, 
as  the  song  on  Athelstan's  victory  at  Brunanburgh,  and 
the  poem  on  the  fall  of  Byrthnoth,  at  Maiden,  in  bat- 
tle against  the  Danes.  But  most  of  the  smaller  poems 
are  on  religious  subjects,  —  metrical  lines  of  the  saints, 
prayers,  hymns,  allegories,  and  paraphrases  of  Scripture. 
The  following  notice  of  Caedmon,  by  Longfellow,  will 
illustrate  somewhat  his  thought  and  method  of  treating 
character :  "  The  author  is  a  pious,  prayerful  monk,  —  an 
awful,  reverend,  and  religious  man.  He  has  all  the 
simplicity  of  a  child.  He  calls  his  Creator,  the  Blythe 
Heart  King ;  the  patriarchs.  Earls ;  and  their  children, 
noblemen.  Abraham  is  a  wise-heedy,  a  guardian  of 
bracelets,  a  mighty  Earl ;  and  his  wife  Sarah,  a  woman 
of  elfin  beauty.  The  sons  of  Reuben  are  called  sea- 
pirates;  the  Ethiopians,  a  people  brown  with  the  hot 
coals  of  heaven.  Striking  poetic  epithets  and  passages 
are  not  wanting,  sprinkled  here  and  there  through  the 
narrative.  The  sky  is  called  the  roof  of  nations,  the 
roof  adorned  with  stars.  Whenever  the  author  has  a 
battle  to  describe,  and  hosts  of  arm-bearing  and  way- 
faring men  draw  from  their  sheaths  the  ring-hilted  swords 
of  doughty  edges,  he  enters  into  the  matter  with  so  much 
Bpirit,  that  one  can  almost  see,  looking  from  under  the 
1  Conybeare's  Illustrations  of  Anglo-Saxon  Poetry. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  33 

monkish  cowl,  the  visage  of  no  parisli  priest,  but  of  a 
grim  war-wolf,  as  the  brave  were  called  when  Caedraon 
wrote."  * 

There  were  but  few  original  compositions  in  Saxon 
prose,  —  and  but  little  of  any  kind  till  the  age  of  Alfred, 
and  as  the  result  of  his  efforts  and  example.  Most  of 
the  prose  works  in  the  native  tongue  were  translations 
from  the  Latin,  in  which  the  translators  freely  inserted 
matter  of  their  own,  as  Alfred  in  his  translation  of  "  Boe- 
thius  on  the  Consolations  of  Philosophy."  If  a  passage  of 
his  author  suggested  an  example  for  illustration  or  an 
apt  train  of  reflection,  it  was  at  once  added  to  the  origi- 
nal or  substituted  for  it.  The  last  chapter  is  entirely 
of  his  own  composition  ;  and  many  of  his  additions  do 
honor  to  his  head  and  heart.  Among  other  works  he 
translated  the  ecclesiastical  history  of  Bede,  and  the  an- 
cient history  of  Orosius.  But  his  efforts,  noble  as  they 
were,  were  put  forth  too  late  to  awaken  a  true  national 
spirit  and  so  give  birth  to  a  national  literature. 

See  the  third  volume  of  Sharon  Turner's  "  History 
of  the  Anglo-Saxons,"  for  a  detailed  notice  of  Alfred's 
services  to  litei'ature. 

1  Longfellow,  Poets  and  Poetry  of  Europe,  p.  5. 


34  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 


CHAPTER  III. 

ANGLO-SAXON    ELEMENT    CONTINUED.  —  LANGUAGE. 

Capabilities  of  the  Language  —  Moral  and  Metaphysical  Terms 

—  Substitution  of  Latin  Roots  for  Saxon  —  Anglo-Saxon  In- 
flections —  Pronunciation  —  Orthography  —  Parts  of  Speech 

—  Inflection  of  Pronouns  — Verbs  —  Government  —  Economy 
of  Expression  —  Tendency  to  reject  Inflections  in  passing 
over  into  English  —  Simple  forms  in  use  by  the  Poets  — 
Words  formed  with  the  least  expense  of  Sound  —  "Words 
derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon — Anglo-Saxon  Terminations 

—  Adjectives  —  Nouns  —  Verbs  —  Parts  of  Speech  —  Words 
considered  with  reference  to  their  Meaning  —  Generic  and 
Particular  —  Number  of  Words  of  Anglo-Saxon  Origin — M. 
Thommerel  —  In  Common  Use  —  Words  used  by  different 
Authors —  "  The  Ormulum  "—Shakspeare  —  Milton— Marsh's 
Estimates  —  Words  suited  to  Subject-Matter  —  Old  Words 
Revived  —  References. 

But  it  is  not  the  literature  of  the  Anglo-Saxons  that 
needs  to  be  considered,  in  this  brief  survey,  farther  than 
as  indicative  to  some  extent  of  their  character.  Modern 
English  literature  has  derived  from  it  nothing  of  value 
save  a  portion  of  its  vocabulary.  Some  of  its  most 
valuable  words  for  the  expression  of  moral  and  relig- 
ious ideas  have  become  obsolete,  —  supplanted  by  terms 
borrowed  from  the  Latin,  and  introduced  through  the 
church.  The  language  was  not  originally  deficient  in 
words  for  the  expression  of  all  ideas  necessary  to  the 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  35 

most  complete  intellectual  and  moral  culture.  Turner 
has  enumerated  no  less  than  sixty  words  originally  de- 
rived from  native  roots,  expressive  of  intellectual  and 
moral  conceptions ;  and  Marsh  ^  remarks  that  there  are 
besides  these  a  great  number  of  other  equally  fertile 
radicals  belonging  to  the  same  department  of  the  vocab- 
ulary, and  that  it  would  be  difficult  to  find  in  any  lan- 
guage a  term  indicative  of  moral  state  or  emotion  or  of  in- 
tellectual action  or  perception,  —  excepting  of  course  the 
artificial  terms  belonging  to  the  technical  dialect  of  met- 
aphysics, —  which  is  not  at  least  approxinaatively  repre- 
sented in  the  Anglo-Saxon  vocabulary.  This  is  certainly 
remarkable,  and  reveals  the  richness  and  native  power  of 
the  language,  all  the  greater  from  the  commingling  of 
so  many  different  tribes  ;  and  renews  our  regret  that  it 
was  never  developed  by  the  hand  of  a  great  master.  It 
would  then  have  maintained  its  independence  more  firmly 
against  encroachment  from  abroad,  and  would  have  come 
down  to  us,  richer  in  terms  charged  with  all  their  native 
freshness  and  beauty  of  suggestion. 

The  substitution  of  words  of  Latin  derivation  for  the 
short,  hearty,  monosyllabic  Saxon  was  a  serious  injury 
to  the  vital  force  and  strength  of  the  language.  To  all 
except  Latin  scholars,  —  and  in  a  great  measure  to  them 
also,  because  of  inattention  to  etymological  study,  —  there 
was  a  loss  of  meaning  in  the  words,  a  loss  of  the  sensuous 
imagery  and  the  many-sided  suggestiveness  peculiar  to 
native  words.  Hence  the  loss  of  poetic  power,  and  the 
necessity  fully  realized  by  our  later  poets  of  a  recurrence 
to  the  fountain-head,  to  a  greater  use  of  Saxon  terms, 
and  the  reviving  of  old  words  from  earlier  authors.  The 
first  rule  for  strength  and  energy  of  style,  is  that  there 
1  Third  Lecture,  Second  Series,  p.  95. 


36  ELEIMENTS  OF  THE 

should  always  be  the  greatest  amount  of  thought  for  a 
given  amount  of  sound.  Hence  the  loss  of  power  by  the 
substitution  of  polysyllables  for  simple  and  monosyllabic 
words. 

Anglo-Saxon  grammar  turned  upon  the  use  of  inflec- 
tions. Its  syntax  belongs  to  that  of  the  inflected  lan- 
guages. Its  grammar,  therefore,  so  far  as  dependent  on 
its  system  of  inflections,  passed  away  without  sensible 
influence  on  modern  English. 

The  pronunciation  was  never  settled.  Although  a 
common  language  prevailed  from  the  blending  together 
of  the  different  dialects,  yet  each  word  naturally  re- 
tained its  peculiar  form  of  pronunciation.  This  is  man- 
ifest from  the  great  variety  in  orthography.  "Words 
were  evidently  spelled  as  pronounced,  or  as  nearly  so  as 
different  writers  could  agree  in  the  absence  of  any  ac- 
credited standard.  Some  words  are  found  spelled  in  a 
dozen  or  more  different  ways,  and  differently  in  different 
ages.  Writers  often  confounded  letters,  and  used  them 
indifferently  for  each  other ;  transposed,  substituted,  or 
added  vowels  and  consonants  at  their  pleasure.  In  view 
of  this  fact,  little  can  be  hoped  from  attempts  to  fix  our 
English  pronunciation  from  the  usage  of  our  Saxon  pro- 
genitors.^ 

In  the  inflection  of  its  words,  the  Anglo-Saxon  agrees 
in  the  main  with  other  members  of  the  Gothic  family  of 
languages.  It  stands  about  midway  between  the  classic 
tongues  and  modern  English.  Grammarians  are  not 
agreed  in  their  classification  of  the  parts  of  speech  and 
the  forms  of  declension  and  conjugation.  The  definite 
article  —  used  also  for  the  demonstrative  and  relative  pro- 
noun as  in  the  German  language  and  the  adjective  are 
1  Klipstein,  A.-S.  Grammar,  p.  35. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  37 

declined  in  three  genders,  and  in  both  numbers.  From 
the  article  are  derived  the  English  definite  article  and 
the  demonstrative  pronoun.  The  adjective  is  compared, 
much  as  in  English,  by  adding  re  to  form  the  compara- 
tive, and  est  or  ost  for  the  superlative.  The  personal 
pronouns  ic,  I ;  pu,  thou  ;  and  he,  heo,  hit,  he,  she,  it,  are 
dechned,  and  the  first  two  in  the  dual  number.  Ic  makes 
min  in  the  genitive ;  pu,  pin  ;  and  he  and  hit,  his.  Our 
their  appears  in  the  genitive  plural  hira.  Him  is  the 
dative  in  the  masculine  and  feminine  singular,  and  in 
the  plural  of  all  genders.  The  possessive  pronouns  are 
formed  from  the  genitive,  as  in  English. 

In  the  conjugation  of  the  verb,  inflections  are  combined 
with  auxiliary  verbs.  The  present  and  the  imperfect 
tenses  are  inflected;  the  other  tenses  are  formed  by  aux- 
iliaries, which  undergo  inflection,  joined  to  the  present 
infinitive  or  participle.  The  weak  and  strong  inflections 
are  found  much  as  in  English ;  the  weak  marked  by 
change  of  ending,  the  strong  by  change  of  stem-vowel 
also.  The  present  infinitive  ends  in  an,  which  is  pre- 
served in  early  English  as  en  ;  the  imperfect  is  formed 
by  adding  ode  (ede),  de,  or  te,  to  the  root,  and  the  parti- 
ciple past  by  adding  od  (ed),  d  or  t,  in- the  weak  conju- 
gation. In  the  strong,  the  imperfect  is  monosyllabic, 
changes  its  vowel,  and  its  past  participle  ends  in  en.  Ex- 
ample of  the  first :  lujian,  to  love  ;  imperfect,  litfode  ;  par- 
ticiple lufod.  Of  the  second :  hindan,  to  bind ;  imperfect, 
band ;  participle,  hunden.  The  present  participle  ends  in 
ende,  the  gerund  in  enne  or  anne.  The  latter  is  always 
preceded  by  the  preposition  to,  and  is  equivalent  to  the 
Latin  supine  and  the  future  participle  in  rus.  The  pre- 
fix ge  is  found  with  all  parts  of  tlie  verb,  but  commonly 
with  the  parts  expressing  past  time  ;  —  the  early  English 


38  ELEMENTS  OF    THE 

y  as  yclept.  In  the  present  indicative,  the  second  person 
singular  ends  in  ast  or  st,  the  third  person  in  ad 
(ath),  or  S  (th)  ;  the  plural  persons  all  in  aS  (ath). 
The  past  tense  has  the  endings  de,  dest,  de,  in  the  singu- 
lar ;  the  subjunctive  de  in  all ;  while  the  plural  persons 
of  both  modes  end  in  don. 

Many  of  the  rules  for  the  government  of  the  different 
cases  correspond  very  closely  to  Latin  usage.  Relative 
adjectives,  denoting  want,  knowledge,  remembrance,  and 
the  like,  take  a  genitive  after  them.  While  those  de- 
noting desire,  disgust,  pleasure,  profit,  injury,  and  the 
like,  take  a  dative. 

So  verbs  of  bidding,  forbidding,  serving,  folloicing, 
obeying,  consenting  to,  take  a  dative ;  of  ruling  and 
separation,  the  ablative  ;  of  needing,  tempting,  using,  re- 
membe7-ing,  forgetting,  ceasing,  &c.,  the  genitive.  The 
same  resemblance  is  found  also  in  the  prepositions. 
These  analogies  doubtless  refer  to  an  early  period  in  the 
history  of  language. 

This  brief  notice  will  suffice  to  show  that  while  the 
syntax  of  the  language  is  quite  unlike  the  English,  fol- 
lowing the  analogy  of  inflected  languages  ;  some  of  the 
forms  of  the  inflections,  particularly  in  the  pronouns,  ad- 
iectives,  and  verbs,  have  been  reduced  and  simplified, 
others  wholly  rejected. 

It  remains  to  speak  of  the  words  the  English  has  re- 
ceived from  the  Anglo-Saxon.  The  first  point  to  be 
noticed  here  is  the  remarkable  economy  of  expression  in 
words  of  Anglo-Saxon  origin. 

Very  little  observation  will  suffice  to  convince  the 
most  careless  observer  of  the  very  great  proportion  of 
monosyllabic  words  in  common  use  to  express  common 
things  and  common  acts ;  as  the  names  of  the  elements, 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  39 

fire,  air,  rain,  dew,  snow,  &c. ;  of  animals,  yba-,  hear,  wolf, 
cat,  dog,  coiv,  horse,  &c. ;  of  the  parts  of  the  body,  hand, 
foot,  head,  eye,  &c. ;  for  the  exercise  of  our  faculties,  see, 
hear,  think,  run,  leap,  walk,  hop,  jump,  «fec. ;  swim,  float, 
dive,  sink,  &c.  "  The  fire  is  said  to  hum,  glow,  parch, 
dry,  scorch,  Mast,  scathe.  Water  is  said  to  floiv,  glide, 
run,  roll,  lash,  dash,  splash,  gush,  foam.  To  mourn,  sigh, 
groan,  weep,  moan,  laugh,  smile,  smirk,  express  affections 
of  the  mind.  In  the  sky  we  have  sun,  moon,  and  stars. 
The  earth  yields  grass,  corn,  hay,  straw,  wheat,  rye,  oats. 
Our  ordinary  food  is  bread,  fowl,  flesh,  fish;  our  fuel, 
coal,  wood,  peat,  turf.  These,  and  such  like  words  as 
these,  form  the  staple  of  the  English  language,  and  more 
particularly  of  English  poetry."  ^ 

This  principle  of  economy  as  one  peculiar  to  the  Eng- 
lish language,  and  inherited  by  the  English  from  the 
Saxon,  was  early  shown  in  the  rejection  of  inflections, 
and  the  adoption  of  the  most  dii'ect  logical  method  of  ex- 
pression, allowing  of  no  delay  in  the  apprehension  of  the 
thought  beyond  that  required  for  the  utterance  of  suc- 
cessive words.  This  tendency  was  exhibited  even  earlier, 
in  the  later  Saxon  literature,  as  the  translation  of  the 
Gospels,  which  exhibits  much  less  of  the  peculiar  syn- 
tax of  the  Saxon  literature  than  is  to  be  found  in 
most  Saxon  woi'ks  ;  though  this  was  due  in  part  to  tlie 
simplicity  of  the  idiom  required,  and  a  close  adherence 
to  the  form  of  the  Latin,  from  winch  the  translation  was 
made.  It  is  quite  possible,  or  rather  probable,  if  we 
were  to  judge  from  the  analogy  of  other  languages,  that 
the  spoken  language  was  much  simpler  in  this  respect 
than  the  written,  and  that  there  were  comparatively  few 
inflections,  and  consequently  little    inversion.     In  later 

1  Harrison  on  the  English  Langunge,  pp.  81,  82. 


40  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

times  this  economy  has  been  exhibited  in  dropping  the 
sound  of  the  final  e,  which  was  formerly  pronounced, 
and  in  blending  the  final  ed,  of  the  past  tense  and  the 
participle,  with  the  preceding  syllable,  as  luved ;  or  in 
changing  it  with  the  letter  t,  as,  asld  for  asked,  accord- 
ing to  the  analogy  of  slept,  crept. 

The  great  poets,  as  Shakspeare,  Milton,  and  later, 
Byron,  Mrs.  Browning,  Tennyson,  and  others,  have  fully 
understood  the  power  and  poetic  beauty  of  Saxon  speech  ; 
while  Moore  has  shown  its  rich  musical  flow  when 
properly  combined. 

This  principle  of  economy  is  still  better  seen  in  the 
formation  of  words  with  the  least  possible  expense  of 
sound.  Take  the  syllable  at,  and  prefix  consonants,  and 
then  change  the  vowels,  and  a  large  number  of  words  is 
the  result. 

Bat,  bet,  bit,  bot,  but ;  cat,  cit,  cot,  cut ;  dit,  dot ;  fat, 
fet,  fit ;  gat,  get,  git,  got,  gut ;  hat,  hit,  hot ;  jet,  jot,  jut; 
ket,  kit ;  let,  lot ;  mat,  met,  mit,  mot ;  net,  nit,  not ;  pat, 
pet,  pit,  pot,  put;  rat,  ret  (rite),  rot,  rut ;  sat,  set,  sit,  sot, 
sut ;  tat,  tit,  tot,  tut ;  vat,  (vote)  ;  wet,  wit,  wot ;  (yate), 
yet,  (yote).  By  adding  the  letter  e  to  many  of  these, 
new  words  in  use  are  formed.  Other  examples  will 
readily  suggest  themselves. 

In  the  examples  above  given,  it  is  possible  that  exami- 
nation into  the  cognate  dialects  would  complete  all  the 
forms  under  each  letter,  thus  completing  the  variations 
of  sound  and  sense  within  the  limits  prescribed.  It  is 
but  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  completeness  existing 
is  due  to  the  mingling  of  many  different  dialects,  each 
of  which  preserved  a  portion  of  the  original  inheritance. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  41 

Words  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon. 

These  may  be  considered  with  reference  to  their  forms 
and  their  meaning. 

It  is  evident  that  most  monosyllables,  and  derivatives 
from  them,  are  of  Anglo-Saxon  origin.  The  following 
terminations  indicate  the  same  source  :  —  Of  adjectives, 
y,  ish,  some,  ful,  less,  as  icindy,  childish,  handsome,  thanlc- 
ful,  homeless.  The  last  two  are  applied  to  roots  from 
other  sources  than  the  Anglo-Saxon,  while  the  former 
belong  almost  exclusively  to  words  of  native  origin.  Of 
nouns,  the  terminations  er,  —  not  to  be  mistaken  for  the 
Latin  or,  —  hood,  dom,  ness,  ship,  as  tor  iter,  manhood,  wis- 
dom, greatness,  hardship.  The  last  two  are  also  applied  to 
words  of  Latin  origin.  The  adverbial  termination  ly,  though 
strictly  of  Anglo-Saxon  origin,  is  applied  to  roots  from  all 
sources.  As  there  are  no  peculiar  verbal  endings,  no  clas- 
sification can  be  made  on  this  principle.  It  may,  however, 
be  observed  that  verbs  which  make  a  change  in  the  vowel 
of  the  root  in  inflection,  in  other  words,  of  the  strong  con- 
jugation, are,  as  a  general  rule,  of  Anglo-Saxon  origin. 
In  short,  what  few  inflections  we  have  are  from  the 
same  source,  as,  the  ending  of  the  possessive  case  and 
the  plural  of  nouns,  the  cases  of  pronouns,  the  endings 
er,  est,  in  the  comparison  of  adjectives,  and  the  inflection 
of  the  tenses,  persons,  and  past  participles  of  verbs.  The 
following  parts  of  speech,  — interjections,  articles,  pronouns, 
conjunctions,  prepositions,  auxiliary  verbs,  the  numerals, 
one,  two,  three,  &c.,  up  to  a  million;  ordinals  with  the 
exception  of  second ;  adjectives  and  advei'bs  of  irregular 
comparison,  —  are  from  the  Anglo-Saxon.  Hence  the 
framework  of  sentences,  the  setting  of  thought,  the 
words  most  frequently  employed,  and   whicli  are  indis- 


42  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

pcnsable  to  the  use  of  language  at  all,  are  of  Anglo- 
Saxon  origin.  The  following  are  the  principal  Anglo- 
Saxon  prefixes:  a,  he,  em,  for,  fore,  mis,  out,  over,  un,  and 
under  ;  as  ahead,  Jefriend,  embody,  ybrbid, /orebode,  mis- 
deed, otitdo,  orernct,  ?<nbend,  unWkc,  undergo."  ^ 

As  regards  the  meaning  of  words,  it  may  be  said  first, 
that,  as  a  general  rule,  all  names  of  particular  objects  or 
parts  of  objects,  all  words  to  indicate  the  actions  and 
sentiments  of  common  life,  the  language  of  house  and 
home,  of  the  shop,  of  business  generally,  and  such  words 
as  belong  to  the  ordinary  intercourse  of  men,  are  from 
the  Anglo-Saxon.  Our  generic  terms  are  from  the  Latin, 
as  objects,  color,  motion,  passion,  affection,  animal,  plant, 
&c.  But  particular  objects  of  sense  or  thought,  as  sun, 
moon,  hill,  house,  wood,  stream,  &c. ;  particular  colors,  Ibie, 
green,  red,  &c. ;  particular  motions,  run,  leap,  %oall:,fly,  &c. ; 
particular  passions,  love,  hate,  &c.,  are  Anglo-Saxon. 
The  language  of  classification,  when  first  applied  to  An- 
glo-Saxon material,  was  applied  by  scholars,  and  bad 
already  become  fixed  in  another  tongue. 

The  number  of  words  in  English  of  Anglo-Saxon  or- 
igin, has,  until  recently,  been  greatly  over-estimated.  A 
large  number  of  writers  have  followed  "Warner's  estimate, 
who  made  some  three  fifths  to  three  fourths  of  all  to  be 
from  the  Anglo-Saxon.  Recent  more  careful  examina- 
tion has  quite  reversed  this,  and  shown  that  by  fiir  the 
larger  proportion  are  from  foreign  sources.  By  counting 
every  word  in  the  dictionaries  of  Robertson  and  Webster, 
M.  Tliommerel  has  established  the  fact  that  of  the  sum 
total  of  43,566  words,  29,853  came  from  classical,  13,230 
from  Teutonic,  and  the  rest  from  miscellaneous  sources.^ 

1  Worces(er''s  Dictionary,  4to,  p.  slviii. 

2  See  Max  Miiller's  Science  of  Language,  p.  84.  Am.  Ed. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  43 

According  to  its  vocabuLuy,  the  Englisli  would  be  reck- 
oned with  tlie  French  and  the  Spanish,  among  the  Ro- 
mance languages.  But  judged  by  the  words  in  actual  use 
among  different  writers  and  speakers,  or  in  common  inter- 
course among  men,  the  Saxon  character  of  the  language 
at  once  comes  out  in  the  strongest  light.  The  vital, 
assimilating  power  of  the  language  is  essentially  Eng- 
lish, having  a  stronger  affinity  to  the  Gothic  than  the 
Romance  side,  yet,  after  all,  neither  Saxon  nor  Latin,  but 
English, 

Of  the  kinds  of  words  in  use  by  different  authors, 
Marsh  has  given  the  most  satisfactory  illustration.  It 
must  suffice  to  note  merely  a  few  of  the  results  of  his 
thorough  and  extended  examination.  When  he  speaks 
of  the  vocabulary  of  an  author,  every  part  of  speech 
is  counted  as  a  distinct  word,  but  all  the  inflected  forms 
of  a  given  verb,  or  adjective,  are  treated  as  one  word. 
Thus  safe,  safely,  save,  are  counted  as  three  words ;  but 
save,  saved,  and  saving,  as  one.  He  finds  that  the  vocab- 
ulary of  "  The  Ormulum,"  written  about  1225,  contains 
ninety-seven  per  cent,  of  words  from  the  Anglo-Saxon. 
The  vocabulai'y  of  the  English  Bible  has  sixty  per  cent, 
native ;  of  Shakspeare,  about  the  same ;  while  the  stock 
of  words  employed  by  Milton  has  less  than  twenty-three 
per  cent,  of  Anglo-Saxon.  It  needs  to  be  remembered, 
however,  that  many  of  the  words  from  foreign  sources 
are  used  but  very  seldom,  some  only  once  or  twice,  while 
the  native  words  are  repeated,  some  of  them,  hundreds 
and  thousands  of  times,  —  yet  all  count  alike. 

In  the  actual  use  of  words,  including  of  course  all  the 
repetitions,  the  proportion  is  in  all  cases  largely  in  favor 
of  the  native  element :  — 


44  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

Chaucer's    Prologue   to  Canterbury  Tales, 

420  verses, 88  per  cent. 

Spenser's  Faerie  Queene,  Book  ii.,  Canto  vir.,  8G  " 
John's  Gospel,  Chap,  i.,  iv.,  xvii.,  .  .90  " 
Shakspeare,  Othello,  Act  v.,  .  .  .  89  " 
Milton,  Paradise  Lost,  Book  vi.,  .         .80        " 

"  L'  Allegro,  Book  vi.,  .  .  .  90  " 
Johnson,  Preface  to  Dictionary,  entii-e,  .72  " 
Macaulay's  Essay  on  Bacon,  .  .  .  75  " 
Bryant's  Thanatopsis,  .         .         .         .  84        " 

Mrs.  Browning's  Cry  of  the  Children,     .       92        "       ^ 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that  the  proportion  varies  in  dif- 
ferent authors  according  to  the  subject,  —  the  light  and 
humorous  requiring  more  of  the  native  language ;  the 
gi'ave  and  serious,  more  from  foreign  sources.  This  dif- 
ference depends  of  course  on  the  power  which  the  author 
possesses  over  his  materials,  and  is  one  of  the  tests  of  a 
truly  great  writer.  His  command  of  language  is  no 
mean  evidence  of  his  range  of  thought. 

The  more  careful  study  of  old  English  of  late  years, 
on  the  part  of  our  great  poets  especially,  has  led  to  the 
revival  of  many  old  Anglo-Saxon  words,  and  to  a  greater 
use  of  this  portion  of  our  vocabulary.  It  is  due,  also,  in 
part,  to  a  more  healthful  sentiment  in  both  literature  and 
art,  a  greater  regard  for  the  true,  the  real,  and  therefore 
a  care  for  the  selection  of  those  means  the  most  adequate 
to  its  expression. 

References.  History.  —  See  Sharon  Turner's  An- 
glo-Saxons. Pauli's  Life  of  Alfred.  Thierry,  Conquete 
de  I'Angleterre. 

Literature.  —  Turner's  Anglo-Saxons,  vol.  iii.     Cony- 
beare's  Illustrations  of  Anglo-Saxon  Poetry.    Longfellow's 
1  See  much  larger  table, —  Marsh,  First  Series,  pp.  12i  et  seq. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  45 

Poets  and  Poetry  of  Europe.  Marsh's  Lectures,  both 
series.  Craik's  History  of  the  English  Language  and 
Literature.     Spalding's  English  Literature. 

Language.  —  Latham  oa  the  English  Language. 
Preface  to  Bosworth's  Anglo-Saxon  Dictionary.  Pref- 
ace to  Worcester's  Quarto  Dictionary.  Harrison  on 
the  English  Language.  Muller's  Science  of  Language. 
And  particularly  Marsh's  Lectures. 


46  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 


CHAPTER   IV. 

THE    DANISH   ELEMENT.  —  THE   NORMANS. 

First  Appearance  of  the  Danes  —  Origin  and  Character  —  Hate 
of  Christians  —  Extent  of  their  Conquests  —  Recognized  by 
William  the  Conqueror  —  Become  civiUzed  —  Affect  the  Char- 
acter of  the  Anglo-Saxons  —  Deepened  the  Love  of  Maritime 
Adventure  —  Nelson  —  Language,  as  affected  by  the  Danes  — 
Few  Words  introduced  by  them  —  The  Normans  in  France  — 
Early  Culture  —  Two  Dialects  of  the  French  —  Arab  Learning 
and  Influence  —  The  Norman  Conquest  —  Radical  Difference 
in  Character  between  the  Normans  and  the  Saxons,  as  seen 
in  later  times  —  No  attempt  to  extirpate  the  old  Language 

—  Results  of  the  Conquest  as  summed  up  by  Craik  —  L'se  of 
the  Latin,  Norman,  and  Saxon  Languages  —  Earl  of  Arundel 

—  Anglo-Norman  —  Earliest  English  —  Extent  of  Norman  In- 
fluence on  the  Language  during  the  first  two  Centuries  of  Nor- 
man Rule. 

The  Danish  Element. 

It  was  about  a  century  and  a  half  after  their  adoption 
of  Christianity  and  settled  abodes,  that  the  Saxons  were 
startled  by  the  piratical  expeditions  of  the  Norsemen. 
"  It  was  in  the  year  787,"  observes  Thierry,^  "  that  some 
strangers  came  in  three  vessels,  and  landed  at  one  of  the 
seaports  of  the  eastern  coast.  The  Saxon  magistrate 
went  down  to  meet  tliem,  to  learn  whence  they  came  and 
1  Conguete  de  fAngleterre,  vol.  i.  p.  106. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  47 

tlieir  wishes.  The  strangers  quietly  allow  him  to  ap- 
proach within  their  reach,  then  suddenly  fall  upon  him 
and  his  retinue,  plunder  the  neighboring  houses,  and  sail 
away."  Such  was  the  first  appearance  in  England  of 
the  pirates  of  the  north,  called  Danes,  or  Norraands 
(men  of  the  north),  according  as  they  came  from  the 
Isles  of  the  Baltic,  or  the  mountainous  coasts  of  Norway. 
They  belonged  to  the  Scandinavian  branch  of  the  Gothic 
family.  They  sprung,  therefore,  from  the  same  prim- 
itive race  as  the  Anglo-Saxons  and  the  Franks.  They 
spoke  a  language  intelligible  in  the  main  to  both ;  but 
this  sign  of  ancient  fraternity  saved  from  their  hostile 
incursions  neither  Saxon  Britain  nor  Frankish  Gaul, 
nor  even  the  territory  beyond  the  Rhine,  still  mhabited 
by  men  of  the  Teutonic  race  and  language.  The  con- 
version of  the  Teutonic  tribes  of  the  south  to  the 
Christian  faith  had  broken  all  ties  between  them  and  the 
Teutons  of  the  north.  The  Northman  of  the  eighth  cen- 
tury still  gloried  in  the  title,  "  Son  of  Odin,"  and  treated 
as  bastards  and  renegades  the  German  children  of  the 
Church.  He  made  no  distinction  between  them  and  the 
people  they  had  conquered,  and  whose  religion  they  had 
adopted.  Anglo-Saxon,  Frank,  Gaul,  or  Latin,  were  all 
the  same  to  him  who  had  remained  faithful  to  the  ancient 
gods  of  Germany.  Religious  fanaticism  and  the  honor 
of  his  Fatherland  were  allied  in  the  soul  of  the  Scandi- 
navian to  an  impetuosity  that  knew  no  law,  and  a 
thirst  for  gain  that  was  never  sated.  They  shed  the 
blood  of  priests  without  remorse,  —  liked  nothing  better 
than  to  pillage  churches  of  the  offerings  of  piety,  and  to 
stable  their  horses  in  the  chapels  of  kings.  On  one 
occasion,  after  laying  waste  with  fire  and  sword  one  of 
the   Christian   towns,    "  We  have  chanted  mass,"   said 


48  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

they,  "  with  our  lances ;  it  began  at  early  dawn  and  it 
has  lasted  all  day."  Such  were  the  men  who  now  pre- 
pared to  find  homes  on  English  soil,  and  to  add  one  more 
element  to  the  already  mixed  blood  of  the  English  race. 
It  must  suffice  to  remark  that  almost  on  their  first  ap- 
pearance they  made  complete  conquest  of  the  kingdom 
of  Northumberland,  or  England  north  of  the  Ilumber, 
which  they  continued  to  hold  under  independent  Danish 
kings  till  953.  In  Domesday  Book,^  made  under  the 
direction  of  William  the  Conqueror,  and  giving  a  de- 
scription of  the  lands  of  the  kingdom  allotted  among  his 
followers,  the  lands  of  Northumberland  were  not  included 
as  forming  a  part  of  his  Saxon  conquests.  They  were 
already  in  the  hands  of  his  kinsmen,  who  had  taken  pos- 
session of  them  at  about  the  same  time  that  his  ancestors 
had  established  themselves  in  the  north  of  France,  and 
he  acknowledged  the  relationship.  The  inhabitants  of 
this  northern  portion  of  England  sufficiently  vindicated 
their  Danish  blood  for  centuries  by  their  restless  spirit, 
and  the  constant  trouble  they  gave  English  sovereigns, 
till  finally  repressed  by  the  stern  discipline  of  the  House 
of  Tudor.  The  Danes  also  settled  so  largely  along  the 
eastern  coast,  from  the  Thames  to  the  Humber,  that  the 
population  of  this  section  was  for  a  long  period  under 
Danish  rather  than  Saxon  laws.  In  fact  for  more  than 
two  centuries  prior  to  the  Norman  Conquest  in  1066, 
the  laws  of  the  Northmen  prevailed  over  full  one  half 
of  England,  and  from  1003  to  1041,  for  four  succes- 
sive reigns,  the  whole  of  England  was  under  Danish 
kings. 

After   gaining   a   lodgment   in  the  Island,  the  Danes 
were   never  expelled.      Their   temporary   reverses  re- 

^  See  Harrison,  p.  30. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  49 

suited  only  in  the  withdrawal  for  a  time  of  their  lead- 
ing men.  At  first,  like  the  Saxons  before  them,  and 
as  is  the  custom  of  barbarous  tribes,  they  exiled  or 
exterminated  the  native  inhabitants  in  the  districts 
they  overi'un ;  but  soon  attracted  by  the  civiHzation 
they  witnessed,  they  were  content  to  subdue,  soon 
learned  the  religious  faith  and  manners  of  the  con- 
quered, and  erelong  became  blended  with  them  as  one 
people. 

The  influence  of  the  Danes  was  rather  upon  the 
character  than  upon  the  language  of  the  Anglo-Saxons. 
Partly  as  the  result  of  their  improved  social  condition, 
and  more  from  the  influence  of  the  religious  system 
they  embraced,  the  latter  had  lost  much  of  their 
pristine  enterprise  and  vigor  as  a  race.  The  absolute 
submission  to  spiritual  authority,  that  suppressed  all 
inquiry  and  independence,  the  ignorance  and  superstition, 
the  loose  morality,  the  customs  and  usages,  half  heathen, 
half  Christian,  that  prevailed  in  the  Church,  all  acted  as 
a  depressing  force  upon  the  native  energies  of  the  Saxon 
mind.  The  Danes  infused  new  and  fresh  life  into  the 
decaying  system,  and  enabled  it  to  withstand  the  rude 
shocks  soon  to  follow,  and  to  retain  a  life  and  potential 
ability  that  the  revival  of  a  purer  faith  at  a  later  day 
was  to  quicken  into  a  more  glorious  civiHzation  and 
culture. 

One  marked  feature  of  the  Norse  character  was  never 
to  die  out  or  be  stifled,  —  the  love  of  maritime  adven- 
ture. For  centuries  this  had  been  developed  by  the 
boldest  excursions  and  ventures  into  every  sea,  and 
though  for  a  time  checked  by  the  same  untoward  in- 
fluences that  had  checked  the  progress  of  the  Saxons 
of  Britain,  it  was  never  suppressed.      It   is  more  than 


50  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

the  position  of  Britain,  it  is  the  native  character  of  the 
race,  their  inheritance  from  their  Saxon  and  Danish 
ancestry,  that  has  made  it  the  ruler  of  the  seas.  The 
last  most  thorough  illustration  of  the  old  sea-king,  the 
scourge  of  the  ocean,  was  exhibited  in  Lord  Nelson, 
who,  by  his  indefatigable  pursuit  of  the  French  fleet 
from  ocean  to  ocean,  and  sea  to  sea,  till  it  went  down 
before  his  terrible  broadsides  at  Aboukir  and  Trafalgar, 
vindicated  his  Danish  name  and  Saxon  blood. 

The  language  of  England  was  little  affected  by  the 
Danes.  Differing  but  little  in  dialect  at  the  start,  they 
soon  adopted  the  language  of  the  country.  Scholars 
skilled  in  the  niceties  of  dialectic  peculiarities  profess  to 
find  many  traces  of  their  dialect  in  the  early  literature, 
and  in  some  districts  of  England  originally  occupied 
by  them,  especially  the  northern  counties  of  England. 
There  are  a  few  names  of  persons  and  of  places  usually 
regarded  as  of  Danish  origin  ;  of  persons,  those  ending 
in  son,  as  Johnson,  Nelson  ;  of  places,  those  ending  in  by 
and  loich,  as  Derby,  Norioich.  The  ending  by  denoted  a 
town  or  village,  and  wieh  a  station.  Hence  Norwich,  — 
north  station,  &c.  The  word  by  still  exists  in  our  by- 
laws, properly  the  laws  of  a  town,  as  distinguished  from 
the  laws  of  the  state.  But  the  extent  of  Danish  influ- 
ence on  the  language  is  by  no  means  determined  among 
scholars,  and  it  is  probable  that  the  exact  line  between 
the  original  Scandinavian  elements  that  were  united  in 
its  first  occupation  by  the  different  German  tribes,  and 
those  introduced  later  by  the  Danes  can  never  be  ac- 
curately distinguished. 

Latham  ^   gives    the    following    specimens   of   Norse 
words  in  the  northern  provincial  dialects  :  — 
1  Hand-book  of  the  English  Language,  p.  48. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  51 


Provincial. 

Common  Dialect. 

Norse. 

Braid 

Resemble 

Braas,     Swed. 

Eldin 

Firing 

Eld,     Dan. 

Force 

Waterfall 

Fors,     J).  Swed. 

Gar 

Make 

Gora,     Swed. 

Gill 

Ravine 

Gil,     Iceland. 

Greet 

Weep 

Grata,     Iceland. 

Ket 

Carrion 

Kiod,     Dan. 

Lint 

Seek 

Lede,     Dan. 

Lathe 

Barn 

Lade,     Dan. 

LiU 

Little 

Lille,     Dan. 

The  Norman  Element.  —  1066-1350. 

In  the  early  part  of  the  tenth  century,  a  body  of 
Danes  or  Northmen,  after  an  unsuccessful  attempt  to 
make  a  lodgment  in  England,  made  a  descent  upon  the 
north  of  France.  They  were  led  by  Rollo,  surnaraed 
the  Ganger,  and  in  the  year  912  obtained  from  Charles  IIL 
of  France  the  cession  of  a  province,  that  was  called  after 
them  by  the  name  of  Normandy.  It  extended  from  the 
Loire  to  Flanders.  The  original  inhabitants,  a  mixture 
of  Celts,  Romans,  and  Franks,  who  spoke  a  corrupt  form 
of  Latin,  or  the  Romance  dialect  as  it  is  called,  were  not 
exterminated,  but,  united  with  the  conquerors,  gave  them 
their  religion  and  their  language.  From  this  fact  it  is 
evident  that  the  original  inhabitants  continued  to  constitute 
the  larger  part  of  the  population,  but  submitted  to  the 
more  warlike  and  hardy  men  of  the  north.  The  Nor- 
mans maintained  a  distinct  nationality  under  the  descend- 
ants of  Rollo,  who  continued  to  rule  over  the  territory 
their  fathers  had  acquired,  rendering  but  a  nominal  alle- 
giance to  the  crown  of  France,  under  the  title  of  Dukes 
of  Normandy. 


52  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

The  Normans  soon  became  distinguished  as  one  of  the 
foremost  nations  in  Europe  for  their  culture  and  civil- 
ization. Their  fresh  blood  from  the  north  had  brought 
with  it  new  enterprise,  which  showed  itself  first  in  the 
greater  interest  in  such  learning  as  was  then  to  be  had, 
and  then  in  a  spirit  of  conquest,  soon  to  be  spent  in  vain 
efforts  to  rescue  the  Holy  Land  from  the  infidels.  Their 
language,  by  the  infusion  of  the  Scandinavian  element, 
differed  a  little  from  that  in  the  south  of  France.  Tte 
Norman  bore  the  name  of  Langue  d'oil,  the  other  Lan- 
gue  d'oc,  —  the  latter  part  of  the  name  representing  tie 
forms  to  express  the  affirmative  yes.  Both  dialects  vveie 
developed  at  an  early  day  by  poets,  in  songs  and  tales 
of  love  and  chivalry. 

In  France  the  learning  which  had  been  fostered  b? 
Charlemagne  had  never  fallen  into  decline  as  in  Eng- 
land. The  schools  established  by  Alcuin  had  been  kept 
up  with  some  degree  of  success,  though  greatly  restricted 
in  their  influence  by  the  disorders  of  the  times.  In  the 
tenth  century,  learning  had  received  a  new  impulse  from 
contact  with  Arabic  scholars  in  Spain.  New  interest  was 
awakened  in  the  classics,  and  attention  was  for  the  first 
time  turned  to  what  may  be  named  scientific  studies.  The 
Arabs  had  first  become  acquainted  with  Greek  literature 
in  the  eighth  century.  The  works  they  studied  most  were 
those  relating  to  metaphysics  and  mathematics,  or  to  the 
various  branches  of  natural  science,  as  botany,  medicine, 
and  chemistry.  For  five  centuries  they  cultivated  these 
studies  with  a  diligence  and  success  that  made  the  south 
of  Spain  the  garden  of  the  world,  crowded  libraries 
with  commentaries  on  the  ancient  authors  and  with  orig- 
inal investigations,  and  made  Arabic  Spain  the  fountain 
of  learning   for  Western   Europe.     "  Thither   students 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  53 

were  accustomed  to  repair  from  every  country  to  study 
in  the  Arabic  schools ;  and  many  of  the  teachers  in  the 
chief  towns  of  France  and  Italy  had  finished  their  edu- 
cation in  these  seminaries,  and  were  now  diffusing  among 
their  countrymen  the  new  knowledge  which  they  had 
thence  acquired.  The  writings  of  several  of  the  Greek 
authors,  also,  and  especially  those  of  Aristotle,  had  been 
made  generally  known  to  scholars  by  Latin  versions  of 
them  from  the  Arabic."  ^  Arabic  learning  was  one  of  the 
first  and  most  important  agencies  in  the  revival  of  letters 
in  modern  times.  Its  influence  had  scarcely  been  felt  in 
England  before  the  Conquest,  save  upon  the  few  scholars 
who  visited  the  schools  of  Normandy,  and  especially  the 
University  of  Paris,  during  the  preceding  fifty  years. 

In  consequence  of  Danish  settlements  and  Danish  rule, 
England  was  already  half  Normanized,  so  to  speak,  be- 
fore William  the  Conqueror  set  foot  upon  English  soil. 
He  had  only  to  complete  what  his  kinsmen  had  begun 
and  been  steadily  carrying  forward  for  near  three  centu- 
ries. But  besides  a  further  admixture  of  northern  blood, 
he  brought  a  higher  intellectual  culture,  and  introduced 
scholars  and  such  measure  of  learning  as  had  been  at- 
tained in  the  schools  of  Normandy.  The  Saxon  portion 
of  the  population  of  England  made  but  a  comparatively 
feeble  resistance ;  a  large  portion  of  the  people  were 
evidently  indifferent  if  not  favorable  to  his  pretensions, 
which,  on  political  grounds  alone,  were,  to  say  the  least, 
as  good  as  those  of  Harold  who  opposed  him,  besides 
bearing  the  sanction  of  the  church. 

As  an  important  element  in  the  future  history  of  the 
language  and  literature,  we  should  not  fail  to  notice  the 
radical  difference  in  character  between  the  Norman  por- 
1  Craik,  vol.  i.  p.  50. 


54  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

tion  of  the  English  and  the  old  inhabitants,  Anglo-Saxon 
or  Dano-Saxon  as  they  might  be.  This  difference  is 
due  in  part  to  the  mixed  blood  of  the  Normans,  and  the 
peculiar  development  effected  in  their  character  from  the 
civilization  to  which  they  had  been  exposed  on  French 
soil,  but  more  to  the  social  position  they  held  as  the  mas- 
ter-race in  England  for  three  centuries  before  there  was 
any  proper  fusion  with  the  original  inhabitants.  They 
became  at  once  and  continued  to  be  the  patrician  class. 
A  patrician  spirit  Avas  thoroughly  developed  in  them  and 
became  settled  as  a  part  of  their  character,  and  to  this 
day  has  remained  an  important  element  in  English  life 
and  as  affecting  the  course  of  English  history.  The  Nor- 
man is  represented  in  the  English  nobility,  in  the  House 
of  Lords,  in  the  royal  family,  in  the  whole  spirit  and 
policy  of  the  British  government.  He  is  represented  in 
the  love  of  rank,  in  the  respect  for  blood,  in  all  the  social 
relations  of  Englishmen.  The  Norman  is  the  aristocrat, 
insisting  on  his  rights  and  privileges,  and  the  opponent 
of  all  reforms  in  church  or  state,  and  the  bitter  enemy 
of  popular  ideas  and  popular  institutions  the  world  over. 
His  character  needs  to  be  understood  as  one  of  the  prime 
factors  in  English  history.  The  other  is  the  Saxon,  for 
centuries  kept  down,  subject  to  all  the  oppressions  of  a 
haughty  race,  his  language  despised  and  neglected,  tiU 
at  length,  making  himself  necessary  to  the  furtherance 
of  his  master's  ends,  he  came  to  demand  some  share  of 
civil  rights,  and  steadily  step  by  step  to  assume  his  true 
place,  —  represented  to-day  by  the  English  Commons,  by 
the  English  people,  —  for  a  time  gaining  the  ascendency 
in  the  management  of  public  affairs  in  the  days  of  the 
Commonwealth,  but  on  the  whole  satisfied  with  a  steady 
progress  in  civil  rights,  and  civil  freedom.     Strictly  con- 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  55 

servative,  like  his  progenitors  before  the  Conquest,  loving 
his  home  and  the  comforts  of  social  life,  devoted  to  pop- 
ular liberty,  but  content  with  its  enjoyment  within  strictly 
constitutional  limits,  —  asking  for  freedom  rather  than 
license,  —  the  Saxon  is  still  radically  distinct  from  the 
Norman,  though  both  are  now  working  together  in  the 
development  of  English  ideas  and  English  civihzation, 
and  the  spread  of  the  English  language  over  the  earth. 

It  is  true  that  the  ranks  of  the  English  nobility,  or  the 
patrician  class,  have  been  largely  recruited  from  the 
Saxon  portion  of  the  population,  as  the  reward  of  dis- 
tinguished merit  in  arms  or  statesmanship,  but  the  re- 
cruits soon  become  imbued  with  the  same  spirit  of  class, 
which  has  become  hereditary  and  controlling.  On  the 
other  hand,  and  as  in  some  degree  antagonistic  to  this 
patrician  love  and  respect  for  rank,  has  been  developed 
the  respect  for  wealth.  This  is  the  badge  of  Saxon 
worth,  and  enters  largely  into  the  social  relations  of  Eng- 
lish life.  These  two  traits  of  English  character  may  be 
traced  back  in  no  small  degree  to  the  influence  of  the 
Conquest,  and  have  had  an  important  bearing  upon  the 
history,  character,  and  literature  of  England. 

There  seems  to  be  no  good  reason  for  believing  that 
William  ever  seriously  undertook  to  extirpate  the  Eng- 
lish language,  and  to  substitute  the  French  in  its  place. 
On  the  other  hand  it  is  recorded  that  at  first  he  under- 
took to  learn  it,  so  as  to  understand  appeals  made  to  him, 
till  his  other  engagements  interfered. 

The  consequences  of  this  revolution  are  briefly  sum- 
med up  by  Craik,^  as  follows  :  — 

"  1.  A  French-speaking  royal  family  was  placed  upon 
the  throne,  surrounded  of  course  by  a  French-speaking 
1  Outlines  of  the  History  of  the  English  Language,  p.  46. 


56  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

court.  Even  when  the  line  of  the  Conqueror  died 
out,  it  was  succeeded  by  another,  that  of  the  Plantag- 
enets  of  Anjou,  which  was  also  French.  It  is  known, 
in  fact,  that  French  continued  to  be  the  language  in  com- 
mon use  with  every  English  king  from  the  Conqueror 
down  to  Richard  II.,  inclusive,  or  till  the  end  of  the 
fourteenth  century ;  it  is  not  known  that,  with  the  ex- 
ception, perhaps,  of  Richard  II.,  any  of  them  ever  did  or 
could  speak  English,  (the  native  dialect.) 

"  2.  A  very  great  number  of  Normans,  all  speaking 
French,  were  brought  over  and  settled  in  the  kingdom. 
There  were  the  military  forces  by  which  the  Conquest 
was  achieved  and  maintained,  both  those  in  command 
and  the  private  soldiers.  There  was  a  vast  body  of 
churchmen  spread  over  the  land,  and  occupying  eventu- 
ally every  ecclesiastical  office  in  it,  from  the  primacy 
down  to  that  of  the  humblest  parish  or  chapel-priests,  be- 
sides half  filling,  probably,  all  the  monastic  establishments. 
There  were  all  the  officers  of  state  and  inferior  civil  func- 
tionaries, down  to  nearly  the  lowest  grade.  Finally,  there 
were,  with  few  exceptions,  all  the  land-holders,  great  and 
small,  throughout  the  kingdom.  The  members  of  all 
these  classes  and  their  families  must  have  been  at  first 
entirely  ignorant  of  English,  and  they  and  their  de- 
scendants would  naturally  continue  for  a  longer  or 
shorter  time  to  use  only  the  language  of  their  ancestors. 

"  3.  French  soon  came  to  be  exclusively  the  language 
of  oral  pleadings,  at  least  in  all  the  superior  courts.  It 
could  not  well  be  otherwise,  while  the  judges  in  these 
courts  were  all  Normans.  Neither  laws  nor  deeds,  how- 
ever, were  ever  drawn  up  in  French  till  more  than  a  cen- 
tury and  a  half  after  the  conquest ;  all  the  new  laws  that 
were  promulgated  were  in  Latin  till  after  the  accession  of 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  57 

Edward  I.  (in  1272),  when  they  began  to  be  sometimes 
in  Latin,  sometimes  in  French.  Even  the  judgments  or 
decisions  of  the  courts,  in  which  the  pleadings  were  in 
French,  were  not  always  enrolled  in  that  language,  but 
often  in  Latin.  And  the  charters  granted  by  the  Nor- 
man kings  were  frequently  in  English  down  to  the  acces- 
sion of  Henry  IL  (in  1154),  when  Latin  was  substi- 
tuted, which  had  been  the  language  uniformly  employed 
for  the  same  purpose  down  to  the  time  of  Alfred  the 
Great."     (Abridged.) 

The  results  were,  that  Latin  continued  to  be  the  lan- 
guage of  learned  works,  and  Norman  French  became 
the  language  of  popular  and  fashionable  literature,  to  the 
entire  exclusion,  for  a  time,  of  the  Saxon  dialect.  The 
French  language  must  have  been  learned  and  understood 
by  many  of  the  native  population.  At  the  beginning  of 
the  fourteenth  century,  there  was  no  English  taught  in 
the  schools,  but  children  first  learned  French,  and  through 
this  the  Latin.  This  practice  was  introduced  at  the  Con- 
quest, and  was  kept  up  till  past  the  middle  of  the  four- 
teenth century.  The  teachers  were  mainly  foreigners 
and  churchmen,  and  commonly  unacquainted  with  Eng- 
lish. The  native  dialect  was  banished  to  the  rural  dis- 
tricts, and  was  recognized  only  as  the  language  of  the 
peasantry  and  the  lower  classes  generally.  But  the 
necessary  intercourse  between  the  conquerors  and  tl^e 
conquered  soon  developed  a  common  medium  of  dis- 
course, a  sort  of  Anglo-Norman  jargon  at  first,  as  we 
may  well  believe.  The  spoken  French  was,  as  it  still  is 
to  a  great  degree,  an  uninflected  language,  and  with  a 
comparatively  simple  order  of  words  in  its  syntax.  The 
Saxon  now  fully  settled,  could  easily  part  with  its  pecu- 
liarities, when  the  only  purpose  of  its  use  was  the  utter- 


58  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

ance  of  thought,  without  care  for  niceties  of  speech  or 
grammatical  rules.  The  nobles  on  their  estates  soon,  to 
a  great  degree  secluded,  from  the  inconvenience  of  trav- 
elling and  intercourse  with  others,  would  necessarily 
learn  the  language  of  their  peasantry,  and  erelong  we 
find  some  of  the  nobility  knowing  no  other  language. 
Of  this  we  have  an  instance  in  the  case  of  the  Earl  of 
Arundel  and  other  noblemen,  on  an  embassy  to  the  Pope 
in  11G4,  who,  after  his  colleague,  the  bishop,  had  spoken 
in  Latin,  stood  up  and  spoke  in  English,  —  beginning  his 
speech  with  the  words :  "  We,  who  are  illiterate  laymen, 
do  not  understand  one  word  of  what  the  bishops  have 
said  to  your  holiness."  ^  This  English  must  have  been 
much  after  the  character  of  the  later  portion  of  the  old 
Saxon  Chronicle  closed  in  1154,  or  perhaps,  more  prob- 
ably, of  the  Anglo-Norman  jargon,  traces  of  which,  as  a 
separate  dialect,  continued  for  a  long  period.  It  is  ob- 
vious, however,  from  the  earliest  specimens  of  English 
so-called,  that  by  far  the  larger  proportion  of  words  was 
Saxon.  The  subjects  on  which  it  was  employed  were 
Saxon,  the  Norman  ideas  to  be  introduced  were  iaw,  and 
left  but  little  trace  on  the  dialect  employed.  By  the 
dropping  of  its  inflections,  the  Saxon  would  naturally 
fall  into  the  present  order  in  the  collocation  of  its  words. 
But  the  max'ked  difference  in  spirit  between  the  two 
classes,  and  the  bitter  enmity  long  cherished  in  the  heart 
of  the  Saxon  towards  the  invader,  were  sufficient  to  keep 
alive  the  old  language,  in  its  verbal  forms,  if  not  in  the 
original  idiom  and  syntax.  But  few  words  of  Norman 
or  Latin  origin  found  their  way  into  the  language  during 
the  first  two  centui'ies  of  Norman  rule, — very  few,  consid- 
ering the  general  prevalence  of  French  and  Latin  in  all 
1  Quoted  by  Craik,  i.  p.  52. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  59 

the  higher  circles,  and  in  all  the  public  relations  of  so- 
ciety. These  few  were  almost  without  exception  such  as 
applied  to  objects  of  traffic  between  the  two  classes,  event- 
ually resulting  in  synonymes  or  nicer  discriminations  in 
the  later  speech ;  or  such  terras  as  were  connected  with 
the  feudal  system,  relating  to  war  and  chivalry,  law  terms, 
and  some  few  from  the  service  of  the  church.  The 
words  properly  of  Latin  origin  will  be  noticed  under 
their  appropriate  head.  Of  the  first  class  are  the  Nor- 
man words  beef,  veal,  forh,  for  the  Saxon  ox,  calf,  hog, 
and  used  for  the  respective  animals  when  killed  for  food. 
Of  the  second  class,  are  duke,  baron,  coxint,  villain,  service, 
chivalry,  esquire,  challenge,  domain,  &,c.  A  curious  in- 
stance of  the  partial  adoption  of  a  word  in  a  new  sense, 
is  offered  in  the  use  of  the  words  grand  and  great,  as 
^ra?irf-parent,  but  great  uncle.  The  first  relation  was 
provided  for  by  a  word  of  Noi'man  origin,  the  second  at 
that  time  had  less  prominence,  and  came  to  fuller  recog- 
nition when  the  time  for  adopting  Norman  words  had 
gone  by. 


60  ELEMENTS   OF   THE 


chaptp:r  v. 

NORMAX  ELEMENT  CONTIXUED.  —  EARLY  ENGLISH. 

Gradual  disuse  of  Norman  French  in  England  —  Statutes  in 
English  —  Final  disuse  —  Duration  of  Norman  Influence  as 
a  Distinct  Element  —  Rise  of  a  genuine  English  Spirit  and 
Character  —  Gradual  Rise  of  English  Speech  —  Layamon  — 
"  The  Ormulum  "  —  Marsh's  Opinion  —  Vocabulary  —  First 
Step  towards  a  Union  of  the  Races  in  the  time  of  John  — 
Condition  in  the  Thirteenth  Century  —  Bishop  of  Lincoln  — 
Alehouse  Rhymes  —  An  Intermediate  Idiom  in  the  large 
Towns  —  A  Saxon  Middle-Class  —  Dramatic  Exhibitions  — 
Minstrels  —  Coleridge's  Glossarial  Index  —  Changes  in  the 
Old  Language,  internal ;  Causes  —  English  instead  of  Norman 
for  Historical  Themes  in  the  Fourteenth  Century  —  Scarcity 
of  good  French  —  Resort  to  Native  Authors  —  Their  Charac- 
ter—  Merry  Tales  — No  uniformity  in  the  New  Language  — 
Plastic  Condition  —  Value  of  the  services  of  Langlande  and 
Chaucer  —  Chaucer's  Vocabulary,  according  to  Marsh  — Wyc- 
liffe  and  his  School  —  Beginning  of  Modern  English. 

Norman  French,  as  a  language  in  popular  use,  fell 
into  discredit  in  consequence  of  the  Anti-French  feeling 
engendered  by  the  wars  with  France  in  the  fourteenth 
century.  The  intercourse,  which  had  been  so  extensive 
up  to  this  time,  in  great  measure  ceased.  The  sons  of 
the  nobility  no  longer  visited  France  for  their  education. 
French  was  soon  discontinued  in  the  schools  at  home, 
probably  about  the  year  1350.  This  was  due,  in  the 
first  instance,  to  the  patriotic  efforts  of  a  grammar-school 
master,  John  Cornwall  by  name,  and  his  pupil  Richard 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  61 

Pencriche.  As  eai-ly  as  1362  it  was  ordered  in  Parlia- 
ment that  all  trials  should  thereafter  be  conducted  in 
English,  on  the  ground  that  the  French  tongue  was  be- 
coming much  unknown  in  the  realm,  and  because  of  the 
manifest  propriety  that  the  parties  in  suit  should  under- 
stand what  was  said  for  or  against  them  by  the  advocates. 
This  law  evidences  a  new  spirit  in  Parliament :  it  was 
not  Norman,  but  English,  in  its  tone,  and  marks  the  open- 
ing of  a  new  era  in  English  history.  Yet  this  statute 
was  in  French,  as  all  the  statutes  were  for  a  century 
longer,  —  the  form  continuing  after  a  radical  change  of 
spirit  had  been  effected.  The  first  in  English  was  in  the 
first  year  of  Henry  VII.  (1485).  It  was  not  till  four 
years  after  that  English  came  into  exclusive  use.  In 
the  House  of  Lords,  French  was  used  to  a  still  later  date, 
as  was  to  have  been  expected  from  its  Norman  blood. 
Some  of  the  parliamentary  forms  are  still  in  that  lan- 
guage. Reports  of  law  cases  continued  to  be  drawn  up 
in  French  till  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century ; 
nor  did  the  use  of  the  language  for  legal  purposes  cease 
till  some  time  after  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth.^ 

But  the  Norman  element  as  such,  as  a  distinct  and 
foreign  element,  unnaturalized  on  English  soil,  was  limit- 
ed to  about  three  centuries.  At  the  expiration  of  this 
period,  it  coalesced  with  the  Saxon  in  the  formation  of 
English,  —  English  character,  English  speech,  English 
nationality,  AVhatever  did  not  unite  in  tliis  organic 
union  may  be  regarded  as  French,  —  the  same  in  kind 
and  character  as  the  later  French,  —  a  properly  foreign 
element ;  as  much  so  as  the  Italian  or  Spanish.  Hith- 
erto the  two  elements,  Saxon  and  Norman,  had  each 
preserved  to  a  remarkable  degree  their  distinctive  pecu- 

1  See  Craik,  Outlines,  pp.  81,  82. 
4 


G2  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

Harities  in  both  language  and  character.  For  the  first 
century  they  seem  to  have  existed  in  mutual  repulsion, 
in  the  second  in  a  state  of  indifference,  and  in  the  third 
to  have  been  gradually  attracted  toward  each  other,  the 
Saxon  gaining  the  respect  of  the  Norman  by  his  substan- 
tial worth,  and  growing  wealth  and  power,  at  the  same 
time  dropping  the  peculiarities  of  his  national  idiom ; 
and  the  Norman  becoming  more  and  more  isolated  from 
his  kinsmen  across  the  channel,  and  realizing  the  value 
of  a  hearty  union,  or  at  least  of  friendly  relations  with 
the  members  of  his  own  household.  Up  to  the  time  of 
fusion,  which  may  be  stated  in  general  terms  at  the  year 
1350,  but  a  very  small  interchange  of  words  had  taken 
place  between  the  dialects ;  but  the  Saxon  now  had  the 
advantage,  because  of  the  national  antipathy  against  the 
French,  and  the  casting  off  of  its  local  peculiarities,  so 
to  speak,  for  a  more  universal  idiom,  so  that  it  could 
readily  adopt  and  assimilate  such  words  from  the  French 
as  wei'e  necessary  to  complete  its  vocabulary.  The  result 
was  a  radically  new  language,  —  new  in  grammar,  and 
new  to  a  great  extent  in  its  vocabulary,  if  the  vocabulary 
be  regarded  as  a  whole.  The  words  in  use  were  of 
simpler  orthography  in  many  cases ;  some  in  each  dialect 
had  been  dropped,  and  a  new  vocabulary  constructed,  or 
rather  had  been  allowed  to  grow  up  out  of  the  remainder. 
In  the  work  of  Layamon,  written,  it  is  supposed,  about 
1185,  the  decay  of  the  old  Saxon  forms  is  manifest;  the 
grammar  is  evidently  breaking  up,  though  more  than  half 
of  the  forms  are  of  the  Saxon  prior  to  the  conquest.  But 
the  words  in  use  are,  almost  without  exception,  Saxon. 
In  the  Ormulum,  written  about  a  half-century  later,  it 
is  said  that  there  is  hardly  a  trace  of  the  old  Saxon  gram- 
mar ;    but  it  is  not  English  altogether,  or  rather  it  is 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  63 

English  in  the  rough,  crude,  unsettled.  The  require- 
ments of  verse,  however,  prevent  us  from  knowing  how 
the  author  would  have  written,  had  he  attempted  prose. 
His  peculiar  method  of  speUing,  the  practice  of  doubling 
the  consonants  at  the  close  of  short  syllables,  to  which  he 
adheres  with  far  greater  uniformity  than  any  other  of  the 
early  writers,  are  proof  of  the  state  of  flux  in  which  the 
language  was  at  the  time.  His  words,  too,  are  almost  ex- 
clusively Saxon.  Marsh  regards  it  as  "  uncorrupted  by 
any  considerable  mixture  of  foreign  ingredients ;  for  we 
discover  no  traces  of  the  Norman  element  in  the  vo- 
cabulary, and  but  few  in  the  syntax  of  this  remarkable 
work."  ^  And  he  adds  in  a  note,  "  The  vocabulary  of  the 
Ormulum  consists  of  about  twenty-three  hundred  words, 
exclusive  of  proper  names  and  inflected  forms.  Among 
these  I  am  unable  to  find  a  single  word  of  Norman 
French  origin,  and  scarcely  ten  which  -  were  taken 
directly  from  the  Latin.  The  whole  number  of  words 
of  foreign  etymology  previously  introduced  into  the 
Anglo-Saxon,  which  occur  in  the  Ormulum,  does  not  ex- 
ceed sixty,  though  there  is  some  uncertainty  as  to  the 
origin  of  several  words  common  to  the  Latin  and  Gothic 
languages  in  the  earliest  stage  in  which  these  latter  are 
known  to  us." 

The  first  step  towards  a  union  of  the  two  races,  and 
consequently  of  the  languages,  or,  more  strictly,  in  the 
development  of  a  new  language,  was  occasioned  by  the 
tyranny  of  King  John,  and  the  popular  hatred  of  his 
foreign  favorites.  This  hatred  was  felt  alike  by  Norman 
and  Saxon,  and  the  Saxon's  long-suppressed  dislike  of 
the  foreigner  found  expression  in  a  common  alliance 
against  the  new-comers.  Magna  Charta  was  the  re- 
1  First  Series,  p.  110. 


64  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

suit,  —  the  foundation  of  English  civil  liberty,  the  first 
I'ecognition  of  popular  rights.  Though  the  share  of 
civil  rights  and  privileges  which  the  Saxons  obtained 
was  but  trifling,  it  was  of  immense  importance  in  its 
future  bearings.  This  common  political  interest  at 
once  had  an  effect  towards  assimilating  a  common  lan- 
guage. 

During  the  whole  of  the  thirteenth  century  a  marked 
distinction  was  still  observed  between  the  Normans  and 
the  men  of  Saxon  origin.  By  taking  an  active  part  in 
all  the  civil  feuds  of  the  time,  the  Saxons  were  steadily 
forcing  themselves  into  notice,  and  to  a  share  of  civil 
rights.  Yet  as  late  as  1280,  notwithstanding  the  rise 
and  prevalence  of  old  English  in  certain  circles,  the 
Norman  Bishop  of  Lincoln  reckons  in  England  but  two 
languages:  the  Latin  for  the  men  of  letters,  and  the 
French  for  the  unlettered  class.  For  the  latter  he  wrote 
in  French  some  religious  treatises,  making  no  account  of 
the  English  tongue  or  of  those  who  used  it.  The  poets 
of  the  time,  even  those  of  English  birth,  composed  their 
verses  in  French  when  they  sought  honor  or  profit.  It 
was  only  village  or  ale-house  rhymers  that  composed  in 
English,  or  in  a  mixture  of  English  and  French,  which 
served  as  a  medium  of  intercourse  between  the  upper 
and  lower  classes.  This  intermediate  idiom  was  at  first 
found  in  cities,  where  the  population  was  more  mixed 
and  more  on  a  footing  of  equality,  through  social  po- 
sition gained  by  success  in  trade,  or  in  the  mechanical 
arts.  Then  it  gradually  took  the  place  of  the  degen- 
erate Saxon,  which,  no  longer  spoken  save  by  the  lowest 
and  poorest,  was  as  much  below  the  new  idiom  as  this 
was  below  the  language  of  the  court,  and  of  all  who 
made  pretension  to  taste  and  refinement.     The  Saxons 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  65 

of  the  larger  towns,  which  enjoyed  certain  municipal 
rights  and  privileges,  by  their  attention  to  trade  and  com- 
merce were  acquiring  wealth,  and,  to  some  extent,  as- 
suming the  manners  of  the  aristocracy  by  birth.  They 
formed  a  Saxon  middle  class,  erelong  to  be  represented 
in  Parliament.  Thus  the  relative  position  of  the  two 
races  was  gradually  changing,  and  with  this  change 
corresponded  the  relation  of  their  respective  languages. 
The  political  songs  of  the  time,  though  for  the  most  part 
written  in  Latin  or  French,  are  occasionally  found  in  old 
English,  and  the  relative  proportion  varying  with  the  rise 
of  the  Saxons  in  power  and  influence,  by  the  middle  of 
the  next  century  the  larger  part  appear  to  have  been  com- 
posed in  English.  The  dramatic  exhibitions  common  on 
festival  days  in  all  the  large  towns  for  the  amusement 
of  the  populace  fostered  the  native  dialect ;  and  the 
native  minstrels  and  story-tellers,  long  banished  to  the 
homes  of  the  peasantry,  began  to  find  welcome  in  better 
circles,  preparatory  to  superseding  the  French  altogether 
in  the  course  of  the  next  century. 

Still  down  to  the  close  of  the  thirteenth  century  the  lan- 
guage of  the  Saxon  portion  of  the  population  remained  in 
great  measure  pure.  Of  the  eight  thousand  words  given 
in  Coleridge's  "  Glossarial  Index,"  only  some  twelve  to 
fifteen  per  cent.,  according  to  Marsh,  are  of  Latin  or 
Norman  origin.  Many  of  these  were  taken  directly 
from  Latin  ecclesiastical  works,  though  conformed  to  the 
method  of  Norman  derivation.  Many  of  these  again 
were  but  little  used.  Indeed  we  are  told  that  not  more 
than  four  or  five  per  cent,  of  the  words  of  any  author 
of  this  centuiy  were  of  foreign  origin.  The  loss  of  in- 
flections was  made  up  by  the  greater  use  of  auxiliary 
verbs  and  particles.     The  syntax  of  the  Ormulum,  which 


66  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

is  the  best  developed  of  any  work  of  this  period,  differs 
but  little  from  modern  P^nglish. 

The  old  vocabulary,  the  substance  of  the  language, 
was  not  changed.  Only  the  grammatical  form  had  been 
broken  up,  decomposed,  and  changed  from  the  synthetic 
form  of  the  old  Saxon  to  the  analytic  of  modern  English. 
There  was  thus  a  genuine  English  language,  as  opposed 
both  to  the  old  Saxon  and  to  the  Norman,  —  sufficiently 
developed  and  settled  to  be  able  to  receive  and  incor- 
porate the  immense  additions  soon  to  be  made  from  the 
Norman,  and,  at  a  later  day,  from  every  language  with 
which  it  came  in  contact.  This  change  from  the  old 
Saxon  was  begun  by  the  Danish  conquest  and  consum- 
mated by  the  Norman.  It  was  so  far  a  change  in  the 
language  itself,  not  the  result  of  fusion  with  any  other,  or 
as  the  result  of  the  incorporation  of  forms  or  words  from 
any  other.     This  was  the  old  English. 

The  change  in  this,  effected  by  the  introduction  of 
French  words,  was  made  by  those  whose  language  was 
originally  French,  and  by  those  who  gladly  copied  from 
the  French  upon  the  fusion  of  the  two  races,  Saxon 
and  Norman,  during  the  fourteenth  century. 

After  the  close  of  the  thirteenth  century  most  of  those, 
whether  in  town  or  cloister,  who  had  taste  or  talent  for 
literature,  undertook  to  treat  in  English  those  historical 
or  imaginative  themes  that  had  previously  been  restrict- 
ed to  the  Norman  tongue.  A  great  number  of  attempts 
of  this  sort  appeared  one  after  another  in  the  first  half 
of  the  fourteenth  century.  A  part  of  the  poets  of  this 
period,  those  especially  who  sought  the  favor  of  the 
higher  classes,  made  French  verses ;  others,  content  with 
the  approbation  of  the  middle  classes,  labored  for  them  in 
the  native  dialect ;  others,  uniting  both  languages  in  the 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  67 

same  kind  of  verse,  changed  them  in  alternate  couplets, 
and  sometimes  with  every  other  verse.^  By  degrees  the 
scarcity  of  good  French  books  composed  in  England  be- 
came such  that  the  higher  classes  were  obliged  to  obtain 
from  France  the  romances  or  narratives  in  verse  with 
which  to  amuse  themselves  during  their  long  evenings, 
and  the  ballads  for  festive  occasions.  The  war  and  the 
rivalry  of  Edward's  time  inspired  a  mutual  aversion  be- 
tween the  nobility  of  the  two  nations,  diminished  the 
attraction  of  literature  imported  from  France,  and 
compelled  those  delicate  in  matters  of  national  honor  to 
be  content  with  home  productions.  Those  who  lived  in 
London  and  frequented  the  court  still  found  something 
to  satisfy  their  taste  for  the  poesy  and  language  of  their 
ancestors  ;  but  the  nobles  and  gentry  who  lived  retired  in 
their  castles,  or  where  a  large  number  of  persons  speak- 
ing French  could  not  easily  be  assembled,  were  obliged, 
for  want  of  something  to  amuse  them,  to  resort  to  au- 
thors in  the  native  dialect. 

These  authors  were  distinguished  from  those  who  wrote 
for  the  court  and  nobility,  by  their  esteem  for  peasants, 
laborers,  and  mechanics,  in  a  word  for  their  popular  demo- 
cratic spirit.  "Writers  in  French  commonly  treated  these 
classes  with  contempt,  —  gave  them  no  place  in  their 
narratives,  where  everything  was  of  persons  of  the  higher 
class, —  noble  barons  and  noble  ladies.  The  English  sub- 
jects of  the  "  Merry  Tales,"  were  the  adventures  of  men 
of  humble  life,  as  those  of  "  Peter  the  Ploughboy,"  and 
such  stories  as  are  found  in  Chaucer.  There  was  one 
great  hindrance  in  the  way  of  the  progress  of  English. 
It  had  no  uniformity  in  different  sections,  hardly  even  in 
adjoining  towns  and  neighboring  cities.  It  was  at  first  a 
1  See  Eeliquice  Antiqica. 


68  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

jumble  of  Norman  and  Saxon  idioms  and  words.  Each 
individual,  according  to  his  fancy  or  the  degree  of  knowl- 
edge he  had  of  the  two  languages,  borrowed  phrases  and 
joined  them  together,  with  such  pronunciation  as  he  could 
master.  In  general  each  sought  to  put  into  his  conversa- 
tion all  the  French  he  could  retain,  in  order  to  imitate  the 
great,  and  to  pass  himself  off  for  a  distinguished  personage. 
This  mania,  which  had  come  to  prevail  even  among  the 
peasants,  rendered  it  difficult  to  write  English  in  a  way 
to  be  generally  understood.  In  spite  of  the  merit  of  his 
poems,  Chaucer  seems  to  have  feared  that  the  diversity 
of  idiom  would  prevent  their  being  enjoyed  out  of  Lon- 
don ;  and  he  prays  God  to  grant  his  book  the  privilege 
of  being  understood  by  all  who  should  wish  to  read  it. 
There  was  thus  a  time  early  in  the  fourteenth  century 
when  the  Saxon  element  came  near  losing  its  ascendency, 
and  but  for  the  timely  rise  of  a  genuine  national  senti- 
ment, and  of  writers  to  embody  it  in  works  that  should 
command  general  regard,  and  be  enabled  thereby  to 
harmonize  the  discordant  elements,  the  English  might 
have  become  essentially  a  Komance  language.  It  is 
important  to  understand  the  peculiarly  plastic,  though 
chaotic  condition  of  English  speech  at  this  juncture,  in 
order  to  understand  aright  the  rise  and  development  of 
our  modern  English,  and  the  real  service  rendered  to 
letters  by  Cliaucer  and  his  compeers.  The  language  was 
in  a  state  of  mixture,  mechanical  mixture,  —  not  yet 
in  chemical,  or  more  strictly  organic,  union.  The  mate- 
rials were  present,  but  the  principle  of  life  was  wanting. 
The  way  was  fully  prepared  for  the  presence  of  a  higher 
organific  power  that  should  come  forth  from  a  truly 
national  spirit,  capable  of  subjecting  to  itself  all  mere 
local  and  accidental  peculiarities  of  character  and  speech, 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  C9 

and  this  was  found  in  the  age  of  Edward  III.  Ineffec- 
tual attempts,  worthy  of  all  honor,  there  had  been,  as  the 
efforts  of  Layamon  and  Orm  ;  and  though  it  is  of  course 
impossible  to  fix  any  precise  date  to  a  change  so  im- 
portant, and  that  must  have  required  time  to  be  fully  es- 
tablished, yet,  it  may  be  safe  to  say  that  this  change  was 
effected  about  the  middle  of  the  fourteenth  century  ;  and 
that  the  Saxon  speech  furnished  the  framework  of  the 
new  language,  its  grammatical  forms,  so  far  as  it  had 
any,  its  principles  of  derivation  and  composition,  its 
formative  principle  in  short,  while  from  the  Norman 
came  a  large  part  of  its  vocabulary.  The  early  writ- 
ers, like  Langlande  and  Chaucer,  had  the  command  of 
both  vocabularies,  and  chose  the  fittest  words  fur  their 
thoughts. 

As  both  languages  were  familiar  to  most  of  their 
readers,  the  occurrence  of  Norman  words  offered  no  ob- 
jection to  the  general  currency  of  their  works,  and  they 
in  their  turn  helped  to  determine  general  usage,  and  to 
secure  the  adoption  of  such  words  in  the  new  language. 
Fortunately  these  writers,  Langlande,  Wycliffe,  Chaucer, 
and  to  some  extent  Gower  also,  were  thoroughly  English 
at  heart,  imbued  with  the  national  sentiment,  and  there- 
fore little  disposed  to  use  words  of  French  extraction, 
where  others  would  answer  their  purpose. 

From  the  confusion  of  speech,  incident  to  the  blend- 
ing together  of  the  two  languages,  in  the  early  part  of 
the  fourteenth  century,  the  example  of  Chaucer,  ob- 
serves Marsh,  "  did  more  to  rescue  his  native  tongue 
than  any  other  single  cau.se  ;  and  if  we  compare  his 
dialect  with  that  of  any  writer  of  an  earlier  date,  we 
shall  find  that  in  compass,  flexibility,  expressiveness, 
grace,  and  all  the  higher  qualities  of  poetical  diction,  he 


70  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

gave  it  at  once  the  utmost  perfection  which  the  mate- 
rials at  his  hand  would  admit  of." 

"  Chaucer  did  not  introduce  into  the  English  language 
words  which  it  had  rejected  as  aliens  before,  but  out  of 
those  which  had  been  already  received,  he  invested  the 
better  portion  with  the  rights  of  citizenship,  and  stamped 
them  with  the  mint-mark  of  English  coinage.  In  this 
way  he  formed  a  vocabulary  which,  with  few  exceptions, 
the  taste  and  opinion  of  succeeding  generations  has  ap- 
proved ;  and  a  literary  diction  was  thus  established, 
which  in  all  the  qualities  required  for  the  poetic  art  had 
at  that  time  no  superior  in  the  languages  of  modern 
Europe."  ^ 

The  same  author  has  affirmed  that  not  more  than  one 
hundred  of  the  Romance  words  found  in  the  writings  of 
Chaucer  have  become  obsolete,  by  no  means  as  many  as 
of  the  Anglo-Saxon  he  employed,  though  many  from  both 
sources  are  now  so  changed  in  form  and  orthography  as 
hardly  to  be  identified  with  their  originals. 

What  Chaucer  and  other  poets  accomplished  for  a 
poetic  diction,  and  indirectly  too  for  prose,  was  earnestly 
carried  forward  in  another  direction  for  prose  by  "NVycliffe, 
and  his  coadjutors,  through  the  discussion  of  religious 
and  political  topics,  and  especially  by  the  translation  of 
the  Scriptures  into  the  language  of  the  common  people. 
Never  in  English  history  had  there  been  a  time  so  favor- 
able for  the  development  of  a  hearty,  vigorous  speech. 
The  national  spirit  was  in  all  the  buoyancy  and  elasticity 
of  youth,  raised  to  the  highest  enthusiasm  by  brilliant 
successes  in  arms,  and  stirred  to  its  depths  by  discussions 
on  the  profoundest  topics  which  can  move  the  human  mind. 
And  there  were  fit  men,  men  of  largest  intellectual  capa- 
1  Second  Series,  pp.  381,  382. 


ENGLISH  LAXGDAGE.  71 

cities,  developed  by  the  best  culture  the  schools  afforded, 
and  a  large  observation,  to  shape  the  language  from  the 
mass  of  plastic  but  chaotic  material  into  living  forms 
of  beauty  and  power.  Such  was  the  birth  of  the  Eng- 
lish character,  language,  and  literature.  New  elements 
came  in  to  modify,  to  change  it  somewhat,  in  after 
times ;  it  has  adapted  itself  to  the  advance  in  knowledge 
and  civilization  ;  it  has  developed  new  powers  under  the 
hands  of  great  masters  ;  declined  and  risen  again  accord- 
ing to  the  intellectual  and  moral  life  of  the  people  that 
have  used  it,  yet  its  inward  essential  character  and  spirit 
date  back  to  the  age  of  Edward  III.,  and  the  middle  of 
the  fourteenth  century. 


72  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 


CHAPTER  VI. 

NORMAN     ELEMENT     CONTINUED.  —  LEARNING.  —  LITERA- 
TURE. 

William  the  Conqueror  a  Patron  of  Letters  —  Use  of  Latin  in  the 
Schools  —  Large  Attendance  at  the  Universities  during  the 
Thirteenth  Century  —  Latin  Chronicles  —  William  of  Malmes- 
bury  —  Geoffrey  of  Monmouth  —  Latin  Poetry  —  Miscellane- 
ous Latin  Literature  —  Eichard  de  Bury  —  Roger  Bacon  — 
The  Scholastic  Philosophy  —  Lifluence  on  later  English  Writ- 
ers—  Theological  Literature  —  Native  Literature  of  the  Nor- 
mans—  At  the  Enghsh  Court —  The  Language  of  Provence 

—  Character  of  the  Native  Literature  as  indebted  to  the  Scan- 
dinavians and  the  Celts  —  Henry  I.  —  Master  Wace  —  The  Ar- 
thurian Romance  —  Character  of  the  Writers  —  The  San  Greal 

—  Walter  IVIapes  —  Wright's  Opinion  —  Place  and  Time  of 
the  Composition  of  Romance  —  Value  —  Transition  from 
Verse  to  Prose  —  Chronicles  of  Froissart  —  Lord  Berners' 
Translation — Separation  of  the  English  from  the  French  — 
The  Physical  Elements  of  the  National  Character  and  Lan- 
guage Complete. 

William  the  Conqueror  was  a  patron  of  letters.  He 
filled  the  bishoprics  and  abbacies  of  England  with  the 
most  learned  men  of  his  country.  Lanfranc  and  Anselm, 
both  famous  scholars  and  theologians,  successively  occu- 
pied the  see  of  Canterbury.  The  nobles  cooperated 
with  the  king  in  the  endowment  of  monasteries  and 
abbeys,  for  the  promotion  of  learning.  "William  and 
most  of  his  successors  were  trained  up  in  the  best  learn- 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  73 

ing  of  their  times.  Still  what  learning  existed  was  in 
the  Latin  language,  and  was  mainly  confined  to  the 
clergy. 

It  was  in  Latin,  says  Craik,  "  that  the  teachers  at 
the  universities  delivered  their  prelections  in  all  the 
sciences,  and  that  all  the  disputations  and  other  exercises 
among  the  students  were  carried  on.  It  was  the  same  at 
all  the  monastic  schools  and  other  seminaries  of  learn- 
ing." At  a  later  period  French  found  its  way  into  the 
more  public  schools. 

Few  of  the  nobility,  though  patrons  of  learning  for  the 
sake  of  the  Church,  were  initiated  into  the  scholarship  of 
the  times.  It  was  a  wide-spread  belief  that  learning  be- 
longed to  the  clergy,  and  they  were  not  careful  to  correct 
the  popular  judgment.  Some  of  the  more  liberal  minded 
ecclesiastics,  however,  established  schools  in  connection 
with  cathedrals  and  monasteries,  that  were  open  to  the 
community  at  large.  Some  of  these  in  time  became 
celebrated.  The  way  was  thus  prepared  for  the  found- 
ing and  patronage  of  universities  in  the  next  century. 
The  number  of  persons  by  whom  these  institutions  were 
attended  in  the  latter  part  of  the  thirteenth  and  the  be- 
ginning of  the  fourteenth,  is  wellnigh  incredible.  They 
were  reckoned  by  thousands,  —  thirty  thousand  at  Oxford 
at  one  time,  —  of  all  ages  from  boyhood  to  advanced 
manhood,  and  poor  scholars  were  to  be  found  in  every 
village  mingling  with  all  classes  of  people.  Meagre  as 
was  the  education  received,  it  could  not  fail  in  this  man- 
ner to  contribute  largely  to  awaken  the  popular  mind,  and 
to  diffuse  some  degree  of  culture  among  the  people.  It 
led  the  way,  doubtless,  to  the  general  movement  and 
struggle  of  the  lower  classes  in  the  next  century  for  some 
share  of  civil  rights,  at  least  for  a  release  from  serfdom, 


74  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

to  wliicli  belongs  the  famous  rising  headed  by  Wat  Tyler, 
in  1381,  the  hist  distinctively  Saxon  movement  in  Eng- 
land. It  found  expression  still  earlier  in  literature,  and 
in  efforts  to  secure  ecclesiastical  reforms  by  such  men  as 
Wycliffe  and  others. 

As  was  to  be  expected,  the  language  of  literature  for 
the  educated  classes  was  the  Latin.  In  this  tongue  were 
composed  not  only  the  theological  and  moral  treatises, 
but  the  philosophical  and  scientific  works  of  the  time, 
and  a  large  number  of  historical  works,  —  perhaps  the 
most  valuable  portion  of  the  Latin  literature  of  the 
period  under  review.  Craik  has  cited  no  less  than  four- 
teen different  collections  made  in  modern  times,  of  these 
old  Latin  historians  and  chroniclers,  one  of  them  extend- 
ing to  twenty-nine  volumes.  Many  of  these  begin  with 
the  creation  of  the  world,  and  bring  down  their  narra- 
tives to  their  own  times ;  others  begin  with  the  Norman 
Conquest.^  The  first,  in  point  of  merit,  is  that  of  "William 
of  Malraesbury,  in  two  parts ;  the  "  Gesta  Regum  An- 
glorum,"  from  the  arrival  of  the  Angles  and  Saxons,  to 
the  year  1120;  the  second,  "  Historia  Novella,"  which 
brings  the  narrative  down  to  1142.  This  author  ranks 
next  to  Bede  as  an  original  pains-taking  writer,  —  a  man 
who  had  a  love  for  truth,  and  some  critical  skill  in  arriv- 
ing at  it  in  the  mass  of  materials  at  his  command. 

Referring  the  reader  to  Craik's  larger  work,  it  must 
suffice  to  mention  one  more,  Geoffrey  of  Monmouth, 
because  of  his  importance  in  the  history  of  Romance 
literature.  His  work  is  professedly  a  British  history, 
translated  in  the  main  from  a  Welsh  chronicle  given  to 
Geoffrey  by  his  friend  Walter,  Archdeacon  of  Oxford. 
It  consists  of  nine  books,  giving  the  histoiy  of  the 
1  Craik,  History,  vol.  i. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  75 

Britons,  from  the  time  of  Brutus,  their  supposed  leader, 
the  great-grandson  of  the  Trojan  ^neas,  to  tlie  death  of 
their  king  Cadvvallader  in  689.  This  work  has  pre- 
served in  the  best  form  the  traditions  of  the  race  who 
were  driven  out  by  the  Angles  and  Saxons  from  their 
former  homes.  The  outline  of  the  story  was  given  by 
one  Nennius,  who  lived  three  centuries  earlier,  but  ad- 
ditions Avere  made  by  Geoffrey.  His  book  was  publish- 
ed in  1128,  and  at  once  obtained  a  very  wide  circulation, 
and  became  the  corner-stone  of  the  romantic  fictions  that 
centred  in  the  person  of  Arthur  and  the  knights  of  the 
Round  Table.  Most  of  the  later  chroniclers  follow 
Geoffrey  with  little  variation,  none,  however,  improving 
upon  his  narrative  sufficiently  to  supersede  him.-^ 

Latin  poetry  was  not  neglected.  More  than  a  score 
of  names  are  cited,  who  obtained  credit  in  their  time  for 
this  class  of  composition.  Of  these  the  most  remarkable 
was  Walter  Mapes,  or  Map,  an  Archdeacon  of  Oxford, 
celebrated  in  the  latter  part  of  the  twelfth  century,  who 
came  to  be  designated  as  the  Anacreon  of  his  day. 

Under  the  head  of  miscellaneous  Latin  literature 
ought  to  be  mentioned  the  "  Philobiblon  "  of  Richard  de 
Bury.  As  the  name  implies,  it  is  a  treatise  on  books,  by 
a  genuine  lover  of  good  literature.  The  author  was 
evidently  a  learned  man,  familiar  with  a  wide  range  of 
classical  learning  ;  and  he  is  perhaps  the  best  illustration 
that  has  come  down  to  us  from  that  period  of  the  influ- 
ence of  classical  studies  in  developing  the  mind,  and  of 
the  culture  that  was  possible  in  the  Middle  Ages.  His 
work,  long  neglected,  though  once  very  popular,  has  re- 
cently been  reprinted  in  this  country. 

Another  curious  work  of  this  period,  called  "  Gesta 
1  See  Analysis  of  Geoffrey's  work  in  Ellis's  English  Eommices. 


76  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

Romanorum,"  is  an  evidence  of  the  metliods  resorted  to 
by  the  clergy  to  convey  moral  instruction  to  the  people. 
It  is  a  collection  of  short  stories,  in  some  part  of  classical 
origin,  with  a  moral  lesson  appended,  not  always  as 
forcible  as  well  intended.  Some  of  these  tales  have 
been  presented  in  better  forms  by  some  later  writers  of 
merit. 

The  name  of  Roger  Bacon,  best  known  by  his  work 
called  "  Magnum  Opus,"  who  flourished  in  the  thirteenth 
century,  is  justly  held  in  honor  for  his  attainments  in 
mathematical  and  physical  science.  His  writings  still 
preserved  "  show  that  the  range  of  his  investigations  in- 
cluded theology,  grammar,  the  ancient  languages,  geom- 
etry, astronomy,  chronology,  geography,  music,  optics, 
mechanics,  chemistry,  and  most  of  the  other  branches  of 
experimental  philosophy.  In  all  these  sciences  he  had 
mastered  whatever  was  then  known ;  and  his  knowledge, 
though  necessarily  mixed  w'ith  much  error,  extended  in 
various  directions  considerably  farther  than,  but  for  the 
evidence  of  his  writings,  we  should  have  been  warranted 
in  believing  that  scientific  researches  could  have  been 
carried  in  that  age."  ^  Yet,  he  was  a  marked  exception 
to  his  age.  The  mass  of  inquii'ers  were  devoted  rather 
to  discussions  in  metaphysics  and  logic,  under  the  influ- 
ence of  the  prevailing  scholastic  philosophy. 

This  philosophy  dates  from  the  appearance  at  Paris 
of  Peter  Lombard's  Four  Books  of  Sentences,  about  the 
middle  of  the  twelfth  century.  Some  authors  ascribe  its 
origin  to  Anselm  of  Canterbury  of  a  little  earlier  date. 
Certain  it  is  that  many  of  the  most  celebrated  schoolmen 
were  Englishmen  ;  as  Alexander  de  Hales,  styled  the 
"Irrefragable,"  who  died  at  Paris  in  1245  ;  John  Duns 
1  Craik,  i.  p.  Hi. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  77 

Scotus,  who  died  at  Cologne  in  1308,  remarkable  for  the 
vigor  and  penetration  of  his  thought ;  and  "William  Oc- 
cam, a  pupil  of  the  latter,  and  called  the  "  Invincible." 
The  questions  they  discussed  belong  rather  to  philosophy 
than  to  literature,  but  have  a  value  for  us,  as  affecting 
the  habits  of  thought  and  culture,  in  which  Langlande, 
Wycliffe,  and  Chaucer  were  to  have  their  training,  pre- 
paratory to  their  great  labors  in  behalf  of  English  let- 
ters. 

The  influence  of  this  philosophy,  its  methods  of  treating 
all  theological  and  moi'al  questions,  its  nice  distinctions, 
divisions  and  subdivisions  of  topics,  long  prevailed  in 
English  writing.  Its  influence  is  very  marked  on  the 
language  of  the  great  theological  writers  of  the  seven- 
teenth century,  as  Howe,  Owen,  Charnock,  and  others, 
inducing  in  them  a  prolixity  and  cumbrousness  of  style 
that  stand  much  in  the  way  of  their  legitimate  influence 
upon  the  mind  of  modern  times.  In  fact  thex'e  was  only 
here  and  there  a  writer  that  could  emancipate  himself 
from  this  hereditary  method  of  treating  theological  or 
philosophical  subjects,  till  the  time  of  Di-yden  at  the 
close  of  the  seventeenth  century. 

The  properly  theological  literature,  which  was  com- 
posed in  the  Latin  tongue,  had  very  little  influence  upon 
English  character  or  on  the  English  language.  The  most 
eminent  writers  were  often  foreigners,  having  little  sym- 
pathy with  English  ideas  or  English  habits ;  they  wrote 
too  for  a  limited  class,  not  for  the  people  at  all.  Though 
the  works  of  some  of  them,  as  of  Anselm,  for  instance, 
have  been  much  admired  for  their  subtilty  of  thought, 
and  read  by  a  larger  public  in  these  latter  days  than  in 
his  own  time,  yet  they  are  of  little  moment  to  our  present 
inquiry. 

5 


78  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

Of  more  account  were  the  Latin  poems  of  the  twelfth 
and  tliirteenth  centuries,  charged  with  satire  and  often 
invective  against  the  clergy  and  the  church.  During  the 
reign  of  John  political  subjects  began  to  be  treated  in  the 
same  way,  first  in  Latin,  and  erelong  in  Norman  French, 
and  still  later,  in  the  reigns  of  the  Edwards,  the  vernac- 
ular language  was  used  with  great  freedom  for  this 
purpose.  These  poems,  from  a  limited  audience  at  first, 
in  due  time  came  to  be  popular  poetry,  and  not  only  a 
means  of  expressing  the  popular  sentiment,  but  of  culti- 
vating the  native  language. 

Of  little  value  as  the  Latin  literature  may  be  to  the 
present  age,  it  is  worthy  of  notice  as  an  element  of  cul- 
ture in  the  Norman  period,  and  in  the  preparation  of  the 
English  mind  to  develop  a  new  language  and  a  new 
literature  at  the  fitting  time. 

But  the  native  literature  of  the  Normans  was  destined 
to  have  the  greatest  influence  upon  the  new  language. 
This  was  made  up  mainly  of  poetry  and  Romance. 
The  earliest  pi'oductions  in  French  literature  were  given 
to  the  world  from  the  courts  of  the  Norman  kings  of 
England.  For  near  two  centuries,  the  French  language 
was  best  cultivated  in  England,  while  the  disordered  con- 
dition of  political  affairs  in  France,  in  consequence  of 
weak  and  inefficient  princes,  stood  in  the  way  of  much 
attention  to  literature.  To  this  culture  in  England,  is 
probably  due  the  fact,  that  the  northern  of  the  two 
French  dialects  eventually  superseded  the  other.  Both 
belonged,  like  the  Spanish  and  Italian,  to  what  was 
called  the  Romance  language,  which  was  a  sort  of  cor- 
rupt Latin,  from  the  blending  of  the  northern  languages 
of  the  barbarian  conquerors  with  the  Latin  tongue. 

The    southern    dialect,  often    called    the   language  of 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  79 

Provence,  flourished  only  about  a  century,  when  it  de- 
generated into  a  mere  provincial  dialect,  still  existing  in 
the  south  of  France,  though  much  changed  from  what  it 
was  in  the  twelfth  century,  wlien  the  favorite  vehicle  of 
love  and  song,  the  language  of  popular  literatnre. 

Something  of  the  peculiar  character  of  the  northern 
French  poetry  was  due  of  course  to  the  Scandinavian 
origin  of  the  Normans ;  yet  more  to  the  old  Celtic 
poetry  of  Brittany  or  Armorica,  of  which  Normandy 
was  a  part.  From  the  latter  the  Normans  derived  the 
materials  of  many  of  their  popular  songs,  and  nearly  all 
the  substance  of  their  tales  of  Romance.  The  Normans, 
even  if  some  remnants  of  the  old  British  population  did 
not  unite  with  them  as  one  people,  were  not  unwilling  to 
accept  the  tales  which  recounted  their  struggles  against 
their  common  enemies  of  the  Saxon  race. 

Henry  I.,  surnamed  the  "  Scholar,"  and  his  Queen, 
were  celebrated  for  their  patronage  of  tlie  Norman  poets, 
at  the  opening  of  the  twelfth  century.  The  eai-liest  pro- 
ductions of  these  poets,  so  far  as  known,  were  based  on 
Latin  originals.  But  they  soon  turned  their  attention  to 
English,  or  more  strictly  to  old  British  subjects.  The 
most  famous  of  these  writers  is  Master  Wace.  He  trans- 
lated into  Romance  verse  the  Latin  History  of  Geoffrey 
of  Monmouth.  It  extends  to  upwards  of  15,000  lines 
of  eight  syllabled  verse,  and  contains  many  things  not 
recorded  in  Geoflfrey.  His  other  work  was  called  "  Ro- 
man du  Rou,"  or  Romance  of  Rollo,  though  he  brings 
down  his  narrative  of  the  Norman  Dukes  to  the  six- 
teenth year  of  Henry  II.  There  are  in  this  some  17,000 
lines. 

But  by  far  the  most  important  works  of  this  period 
in  their  results  upon  the  English  language  and  literature, 


80  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

were  the  Romances  of  the  San  Greal,  and  the  Roun(3 
Table,  the  Arthurian  Romance,  as  it  is  sometimes 
called.  The  different  autliors  who  have  investigated 
this  -subject  are  not  agreed  in  their  results,  further 
than  to  attribute  these  various  stories  to  a  British  ori- 
gin, for  their  substance,  and  their  form  and  variety 
to  the  skill  of  various  Norman  writers,  who  wrote 
without  fear  of  criticism,  either  of  the  facts  they  pro- 
fessed to  narrate,  or  of  the  style  in  which  their  works 
w-ere  executed.  The  San  Greal,  according  to  the  com- 
mon story  of  the  old  Romance,  derived  from  some 
of  the  apocryphal  gospels,  was  the  plate  from  which 
Christ  ate  his  last  supper,  and  was  appropriated  by 
Joseph  of  Arimathea.  It  was  endowed  with  a  great 
variety  of  wonderful  attributes  to  suit  the  ignorance 
and  superstition  of  the  dark  ages,  and  played  a  prom- 
inent part  in  the  stories  of  Arthur  and  his  knights. 
Arthur  was  the  hero  of  British  story,  who  by  powers 
human  and  superhuman,  the  centre  of  the  strangest  ad- 
ventures, struggled  for  the  defence  of  his  native  Britain. 
I  shall  quote  Wright,  given  in  Craik,^  as  on  the  whole 
the  most  trustworthy  of  those  who  have  written  on  the 
subject. 

"  Walter  Mapes  was  distinguished  as  a  writer  in  the 
Anglo-Norman  language,  as  well  as  in  Latin.  It  is 
to  him  we  owe  a  large  portion  of  the  cycle  of  the 
Romances  of  the  Round  Table,  in  the  eai-liest  form  in 
which  they  are  known.  This  first  series  of  these  ro- 
mances consists  of  the  Roman  de  St.  Graal,  or  the  his- 
tory of  the  Graal  before  its  pretended  arrival  in  Brit- 
ain, brought  by  Joseph  of  Arimathea ;  of  the  Roman 
de  Merlin ;  of  the  Roman  de  Lancelot  du  Lac ;  of  the 
1  Vol.  i.  p.  124. 


ENGLISH  LAXGUAGE.  ^1 

Quete  du  St.  Graal,  which  is  a  sequel  to  the  adven- 
tures of  Lancelot;  and  of  the  death  of  King  Arthur, 
forming  the  Roman  de  la  Mort  Arthur.  The  three  lat- 
ter were  the  work  of  Mapes,  as  we  learn  from  the  con- 
cluding paragraph  of  the  Mort  Arthur,  and  from  a  later 
writer  of  another  branch  of  the  series,  Helie  de  Borron, 
who  completed  the  Roman  de  Tristam,  in  the  reign  of 
Henry  III.  These  authorities  appear  to  intimate  that 
Mapes  translated  his  romances  from  a  Latin  original, 
Avhich  is  distinctly  stated  in  some  of  the  manuscripts  ; 
but  we  have  no  other  evidence  of  the  existence  of  such 
an  original,  and  it  is  probable  that  a  great  part  of  the  in- 
cidents of  the  story  was  the  work  of  the  writer's  own 
imagination,  the  whole  being  founded  on  popular  legends 
then  floating  about." 

Wright  further  adds,  that  the  manuscripts  contain- 
ing these  romances  belong  to  the  latter  half  of  the  thir- 
teenth, or  the  first  part  of  the  fourteenth  century.  It 
is  believed,  however,  that  these  metrical  romances  in  the 
French  tongue  were  written  freely  in  England,  as  well  as 
in  France,  during  the  whole  of  the  thirteenth  and  four- 
teenth centuries.  They  were  often  referred  to  Latin 
originals,  or  to  pretended  and  real  historical  sources,  in 
order  to  obtain  greater  credit  with  their  readers ;  and 
towards  the  latter  portion  of  the  time  they  began  to  be 
written  in  prose,  because  prose  was  thought  to  be  true, 
while  verse  had  been  found  false.  For  centuries  these 
stories,  made  up  of  the  strangest  and  most  incredible 
as  well  as  incongruous  material,  half  heathen,  half  Chris- 
tian, with  scenes  and  characters  of  classic  story  brought 
into  juxtaposition  with  northern  legends,  mediaeval  su- 
perstition, and  Arab  fiction,  —  the  strangest  medley  imag- 
inable, yet  often  wrought  up  with  some  little  humor,  and 


82  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

power  of  description,  though  oftenest  of  the  coarsest  mo- 
rality, —  obtained  general  currency  among  the  reading 
classes,  as  well  as  among  the  common  people  in  Eng- 
land. Tliey  have  an  interest  for  us  in  this  connection 
as  showing  the  condition  of  the  popular  mind  and  heart, 
and  as  a  means  of  culture  for  the  French  language,  which 
was  soon  to  furnish  so  many  words  and  thoughts  to  the 
native  idiom. 

In  regard  to  the  transition  from  verse  to  prose,  it  may 
be  observed  tliat  verse  was  the  only  form  in  which  the 
romances  were  written  down  to  the  end  of  the  twelfth 
century.  In  the  thirteenth,  a  few  appeared  in  prose ; 
and  it  became  the  common  form  before  the  close  of  the 
fourteenth,  so  that  many  of  the  old  metrical  romances 
were  recast  to  appear  in  prose,  in  order  to  retain  their 
hold  on  the  popular  mind.  These  French  prose  roman- 
ces do  not  seem  to  have  been  very  current  in  England, 
but  to  have  given  place  rather  to  English  composition 
upon  the  same  subject-matter. 

In  their  own  day  the  chronicles  of  Froissart  were 
reckoned  among  the  French  prose  romances.  The  fact 
shows  that  even  in  his  time  romance  was  not  regarded 
as  properly  fiction,  but  laid  claims  to  truthful  history. 
This  old  chronicler  shared  largely  in  the  popular  love  of 
the  marvellous,  and  is  more  trustworthy  as  a  painter  of 
manners  and  character  than  as  a  truthful  historian.  His 
chronicle  is  "certainly  the  truest  and  most  lively  picture 
that  any  writer  has  bequeathed  to  us  of  the  spirit  of  a  par- 
ticular era  ;  it  shows  '  the  very  age  and  body  of  the  time, 
his  form  and  pressure.'  In  a  higher  than  the  literal  sense, 
the  most  apocryphal  incidents  of  this  most  splendid  and 
imaginative  of  gossips  are  full  of  truth ;  they  cast  more 
light  upon  the  actual  men  and  manners   that  are  de- 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  83 

scribed,  and  bring  back  to  life  more  of  the  long-buried 
past  than  the  most  careful  details  of  any  other  histo- 
rian." ^ 

Froissart  wrote  for  a  French  audience,  —  for  the  court 
and  the  nobility,  —  of  war  and  chivalry,  fetes  and  tourna- 
ments, of  high-born  dames  and  noble  ladies.  There  is 
nothing  English  or  Saxon  in  him.  Yet  his  work  is  of 
the  utmost  value  to  us,  to  show  the  spirit  of  one  portion 
of  our  mixed  English  blood,  and  that  just  at  the  point 
of  union  with  the  Saxon  branch.  The  spirit  of  chivalry 
never  ran  higher  than  in  the  days  of  Edward  III.  and 
the  Black  Prince ;  and  it  had  great  influence  upon  the 
course  of  English  thought  and  English  literature.  Spen- 
ser's "  Faerie  Queene  "  at  a  later  day  was  representative 
of  the  spirit  of  chivalry,  when  the  reality  had  just  enough 
gone  by  to  become  a  fitting  theme  for  poetry  and  ro- 
mance. Froissart  has  been  fortunate  in  having  found  a 
translator  in  Lord  Berners,  at  that  state  of  the  English 
language  most  nearly  correspondent  to  the  French  of  his 
original,  and  therefore  the  best  adapted  to  give  an  Eng- 
lish equivalent  for  the  French  chronicles. 

We  have  thus  endeavored  to  point  out  the  influence  of 
the  Normans  upon  the  English  language  and  character, 
through  their  associations  and  spoken  language,  and  by 
their  intellectual  culture  in  the  two  directions  in  which  it 
was  displayed,  through  Latin  scholarship  and  literature, 
and  the  native  Norman.  After  the  fourteenth  century, 
and  the  union  of  Norman  and  Saxon  in  the  English 
character  and  language,  the  proper  influence  of  France 
and  of  the  French  is  to  be  regarded  rather  as  a  foreign 
influence,  as  much  so  as  the  Spanish  or  Italian.  The 
French  and   the    English   became   entirely   separate  in 

1  Craik,  i.  p.  169. 


84  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

interests,  and  to  a  great  degree  in  tastes  and  habits 
of  thought ;  and  have,  perhaps,  been  arrayed  in  arras 
against  each  other  oftener,  and  for  longer  periods  than 
any  other  nations  of  the  old  world. 

From  this  time  no  new  physical  elements  have  been 
added  to  the  English  blood  or  character.  Whatever  new 
intellectual  traits  may  have  made  their  appearance,  have 
been  called  out  by  foreign  literature,  by  culture  at  home, 
or  by  such  political  conditions  and  circumstances  as  were 
fitted  to  develop  them.  The  American  branch  of  the 
family  has  received  greater  additions  from  foreign  sour- 
ces, and  has  exhibited  to  some  extent  a  peculiar  national 
character  as  the  result,  —  though  more  is  probably  due 
to  the  free  institutions  which  have  allowed  the  freest 
range  to  all  peculiarities  of  individual  character,  and  to 
the  largest  enterprise  in  all  directions  of  human  thought. 
It  is  not  strange,  therefore,  that  marked  differences 
should  already  appear,  if  not  so  fully  at  present  in  the 
language,  yet  in  the  general  tone  and  spirit  of  Ameri- 
can as  distinguished  from  English  literature. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  85 


CHAPTER  VII. 

EARLY   ENGLISH   LITERATURE. 

Distinct  National  Spirit  and  Language  —  Early  Literary  Works 
—  Layamon  —  Edition  of  Sir  Francis  Madden  —  Philological 
Value  —  Verse  —  "  Ancren  Riwle  "  —  Vocabulary  —  "  The 
Ormuluni"  —  Dr.  White's  Edition  —  Orthography  —  Traces 
of  Norman  Influence  —  Marsh's  Estimate  of  the  Work  —  The 
Proclamation  of  Henry  III.  —  The  Romance  of  Alexander  — 
"The  Owl  and  Nightingale  "  —  "  Surtees Psalter"  —  "  Chroni- 
cle of  Robert  of  Gloucester  "  — "The  Gcste  of  Kj'ng  Horn  "  — 
Old  Sermons  from  "  Reliquite  Antiquaj "  —  Most  important 
Grammatical  Changes  of  the  Thirteenth  Century — Vocabulary 
according  to  Coleridge's  Glossarial  Index. 

Until  the  middle  of  the  fourteenth  century,  there  was 
nothing  in  the  native  literature  that  was  really  distinctive, 
or  possessing  national  traits,  or  imbued  with  the  national 
spirit.  The  various  works  which  have  come  down  to  us, 
both  in  prose  and  verse,  are  of  value  rather  as  showing 
the  condition  and  progressive  development  of  the  lan- 
guage than  for  any  truly  literary  merit.  Any  discussion, 
however,  of  these  works  in  the  latter  sense  is  foreign  to 
our  present  purpose  ;  yet  some  more  particular  reference 
is  necessary  in  order  to  show  the  condition  of  the  language. 
The  most  important  of  these  works  are  "The  Brut"  of 
Layamon,  "  The  Orraulum,"  "  The  Ancren  Riwle,"  '•  Rob- 
ert of  Gloucester's  Chronicle,"  and  one  or  two  romances 
and  poems.     For  an  extended  and  careful  notice  of  these 


86  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

works,  with  copious  extracts  accompanied  witli  valuable 
notes,  tlie  reader  is  referred  to  Marsh's  Lectures,  Sec- 
ond Series,  and  to  the  larger  work  of  Craik.  A  brief 
outline  is  all  that  can  here  be  attempted,  and  as  only 
a  part  of  tlie  works  referred  to  are  accessible  to  the 
writer,  this  outline  will,  in  part,  be  derived  from  the 
authors  just  nainc.d. 

The  work  of  Layanion  has  a  philological  interest  from 
its  marking  thi'  l)oundary-line,  so  to  speak,  between  the 
Saxon  and  Old  English.  By  some  writers  it  is  classed 
on  one  side,  and  by  some  on  the  other.  It  is  best  re- 
garded as  marking  the  transition.  It  is  only  since  1847 
that  this  work  has  been  accessible  to  the  majority  of 
English  scholars,  through  the  pains-taking  labors  of  Sir 
Francis  Madden,  Keeper  of  the  MSS.  of  the  British 
Museum.  He  has  carefully  edited  the  work,  and  pub- 
lished it  in  thi-ee  octavo  volumes,  with  a  valuable  preface, 
glossary,  and  notes.  It  passes  by  the  name  of  Layamon's 
Brut,  and  is  a  poetical  paraphrase  of  the  Brut  of  "Wace, 
a  French  versification  of  the  Latin  history  of  Geoffrey  of 
Monmouth.  As  Wace  enlarged  upon  his  original,  so 
Layamon  has  enlarged  upon  bis,  making  his  work  more 
than  double  in  contents  by  additions  of  his  own  invention, 
by  episodes  derived  from  current  traditions,  and  by  mate- 
rials gleaned  from  such  other  sources  as  were  accessible 
to  him.  Wace's  work  is  comprised  in  some  15,000  lines ; 
Layamon's  in  32,250. 

Layamon  was  no  servile  copyist.  He  possessed  much 
imagination  of  his  own,  and  often  improves  upon  his 
author  in  the  beauty  and  power  of  his  description,  and 
the  addition  of  striking  incidents.  This  makes  his  work 
much  more  like  an  original  composition,  and  adds  greatly 
to  its  philological  value. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  87 

All  that  is  known  of  the  author  is  contained  in  a  few 
lines  in  the  preface  of  his  work,  from  which  we  learn 
that  he  was  a  priest  of  a  church  at  Ernley,  on  the  banks 
of  the  Severn,  in  AYorcestershire.  It  is  supposed  that  he 
wrote  his  work  between  the  years  1180  and  1207,  per- 
haps completing  it  in  the  latter  year.  There  are  two 
copies  of  the  work  in  MS.,  the  one  just  cited,  as  the 
author  left  it,  and  a  copy  slightly  abridged,  made,  it  is 
supposed,  about  fifty  years  later.  The  second  MS.  has 
been  injured,  and  is  defective  in  some  pai'ts.  Both  were 
printed  by  the  editor  in  parallel  columns,  with  a  running 
translation  at  the  foot  of  the  page  in  modern  English. 
The  value  of  the  second  MS.  depends  upon  the  changes 
of  grammatical  forms  and  in  the  use  of  words,  which  had 
taken  place  in  the  interval  of  the  fifty  years.  In  the 
later  text,  we  find  much  less  adherence  to  the  grammat- 
ical forms  of  the  old  Saxon,  and  many  forms  coming  into 
use  which  afterwards  became  fixed  in  the  English  tongue. 
The  gender  of  nouns,  for  instance,  in  the  earlier  text, 
follows  the  Anglo-Saxon ;  in  the  later,  it  is  often  neg- 
lected. The  genitive  of  proper  names  in  es  of  the 
earlier  text  is  generally  expi-essed  by  tlie  pronoun  his 
in  the  later ;  Arthures  lond  by  Arthur  his  lond.  Again 
the  dual  of  the  pronoun  in  the  earlier  text  disappears  in 
the  later ;  so  too  the  final  n  of  the  infinitive.  In  the 
earlier,  the  usual  ending  of  the  present  participle  is 
ende  or  inde,  and  only  one  instance  of  inge  ;  in  the  later, 
both  are  found  about  equally.  Yet  more  remarkable  is 
the  fact,  that  many  words  and  phrases  in  the  earlier  text 
had  become  obsolete  or  unintelligible  to  the  later  writer. 

The  blunder  of  the  copyist  in  one  instance,  in  repeat- 
ing eighteen  lines,  answers  a  valuable  purpose,  in  conse- 
quence of  the  variations  made,  showing  that  very  little 


88  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

reliance  can  be  placed  on  the  verbatim  et  literatim  accu- 
racy of  the  transcribers  of  the  thirteenth  century,  or  what 
is  more  probable,  that  the  language  was  so  unsettled  as 
to  make  such  variations  of  no  account. 

This  work  shows,  most  conclusively,  that  the  change  of 
the  Saxon  into  English  was  purely  an  organic  change  of 
the  Saxon  itself,  helped  on,  it  may  be,  by  the  presence 
of  the  Norman,  but  not  as  the  result,  in  the  tirst  instance, 
of  union  with  it.  Considering  that  Layamon  translated 
from  a  French  work,  it  is  certainly  remarkable  that  not 
more  than  fifty  words  in  the  earlier  text  are  derived  from 
the  French,  including  some  that  may  have  come  directly 
from  the  Latin,  and  some  in  use  before  the  time  of  Lay- 
amon. "  Of  this  number,"  the  editor  observes,  "  the  later 
text  retains  some  thirty,  and  adds  to  them  rather  more 
than  forty,  not  found  in  the  earlier  version  ;  so  that  if  we 
reckon  merely  words  of  French  origin  in  both  texts,  con- 
taining more  than  56,800  lines,  we  shall  be  able  to  form 
a  tolerably  correct  estimate,  how  little  the  English  lan- 
guage was  really  affected  by  foreign  converse  even  as 
late  as  the  middle  of  the  thii'teenth  century."  Another 
circumstance  of  importance  to  be  noted  here,  is  the  col- 
loquial character  of  much  of  the  work,  rendering  it  es- 
pecially valuable  as  conveying  to  us  the  current  speech 
of  the  writer's  time. 

The  form  of  the  verse  is  characteristic  of  the  time, 
partly  alliterative  like  the  old  Saxon,  and  partly  of  rhym- 
ing couplets.  Many  couplets  occur  in  which  both  allit- 
eration and  rhyme  are  employed,  whilst  others  have 
neither.  The  latter  probably  depended  wholly  on  ac- 
cent. The  author  slides  from  one  form  to  the  other 
quite  at  pleasure.  There  is,  however,  more  of  allitera- 
tion than  of  rhyme,  even  including  the  imperfect  or  as- 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  89 

sonant  terminations.  Yet  considering  the  unsettled  con- 
dition of  the  language,  the  form  is  one  that  reflects  great 
credit  upon  the  author  as  an  honest  effort  to  give  form  to 
what  was  wellnigh  formle>s. 

The  influence  of  this  work  in  fixing  the  character  of 
the  language,  notwithstanding  its  merits,  was  far  less 
than  it  Avould  have  been,  but  for  the  subject-matter.  Its 
object  was  to  perpetuate  the  memory  and  exploits  not  of 
a  still  flourishing  race,  but  rather  of  one  passed  away  ; 
it  was  not  therefore  national  or  patriotic,  like  the  works 
of  Homer,  for  instance,  and  failed  of  awakening  a  general 
interest,  and  so  of  its  legitimate  influence  as  a  literary 
work  of  real  merit. 

The  "  Ancren  Riwle,"  or  the  Anchoresses'  Rule,  was 
probably  written  about  the  same  time  as  the  work  of 
Layamon.  The  subject-matter  of  this  too,  was  not  of  a 
kind  to  gain  for  it  any  wide  influence,  and  is  of  interest 
only  as  another  witness  to  the  character  of  the  language. 
It  was  a  treatise  on  the  duties  of  monastic  life,  addressed 
to  three  ladies  who  Avith  their  servants,  or  lay  sisters, 
appear  to  have  constituted  a  religious  house  at  Tarente 
in  Dorsetshire.  It  is  in  prose,  and  thus  has  a  greater 
philological  value,  as  better  illustrative  of  the  language 
of  common  life.  It  retains  quite  as  many  of  the  old 
Saxon  forms  as  Layamon's  Brut.  The  spelling  is  of 
a  very  unsettled  character.  The  moods  and  tenses  are 
both  changed,  and  in  many  words  not  at  all  from  the 
old  forms.  The  most  noticeable  difference  between  this 
work  and  that  of  Layamon  is  found  in  the  vocabulary. 
"  The  quantity  of  matter  in  the  '  Ancren  Riwle,' "  observes 
Marsh,^  "  exclusive  of  Latin  quotation,  is  less  than  half 
of  that  in  Layamon,  but  the  glossary  to  the  former  con- 
1  Lectures,  Second  Series,  pp.  170, 171. 


90  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

tains  twice  as  many  French  words  as  Layamon,  and 
yet  omits  a  large  number  because  they  were  tliouglit  too 
familiar  to  need  explanation.  Much  of  this  difference 
in  vocabulary  is  doubtless  to  be  ascribed  to  the  fact  that 
the  Ancren  Riwle,  treating  of  religious  subjects,  natu- 
rally adopted  the  dialect  of  the  Romish  ascetic  discipline, 
which  was  in  great  part  of  Latin  derivation."  Some  of 
the  forms  of  words  would  indicate  a  later,  and  some  an 
earlier  date  than  the  work  of  Layamon.  The  arrange- 
ment of  words,  however,  in  the  Ancren  Riwle,  is  almost 
modern  ;  due  probably  to  its  colloquial  character,  since 
the  spoken  language  at  all  times  was  probably  far  less 
inflected  and  consequently  more  like  modern  English  in 
its  syntactical  arrangement,  than  the  written. 

The  Ormulum,  so  named,  the  author  says,  because 
Orm  wrote  it,  is  esteemed  one  of  the  most  valuable 
works  of  our  old  English  literature.  It  belongs  to  the 
early  part  of  the  thirteenth  century,  and  was  written  by 
a  monk  of  the  Augustine  order,  at  the  request  of  a  broth- 
er monk,  and  consists  of  a  series  of  Homilies  or  practi- 
cal inferences  from  those  portions  of  the  New  Testament 
which  were  read  in  the  daily  service  of  the  church.  They 
are  composed  in  metre,  with  occasional  alliteration,  with- 
out rhyme,  and  in  English  for  the  spiritual  improvement 
of  his  countrymen.  They  possessed  evidently  too  much 
genuine  religious  sentiment  for  the  age,  and  failed  of 
popularity.  Li  fact  there  is  but  a  single  copy  in  MS. 
extant,  and  that  is  probably  the  author's  copy.  This  is 
but  a  fragment  of  the  work,  tliough  extending  to  some 
20,000  lines.  The  metre  is  remarkably  well  preserved, 
and  what  is  moi"e  remarkable  still  is  the  uniform  though 
rather  peculiar  orthography.  In  these  respects  it  is  in 
advance  of  other  literary  works  of  the  century,  while 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  91 

the  Saxon  words  and  forms  blended  with  Engli^h  suffi- 
ciently indicate  the  real  time  of  its  production.  It  was 
first  printed,  carefully  edited  with  notes  and  a  glossary, 
in  1852,  by  Robert  Meadows  White,  D.  D.,  sometime 
Professor  of  Anglo-Saxon  at  Oxford. 

The  principal  peculiarity  of  its  orthography  is  the 
doubling  of  the  consonants  after  short  vowels,  evidently 
with  the  design  to  indicate  the  current  pronunciation. 
It  is  worthy  of  note  that  the  quantity  thus  indicated  has 
remained  to  a  great  degree  unchanged ;  and  that  the 
method  of  spelling  adopted  by  the  author  for  the  ex- 
press purpose  of  showing  the  proper  sounds  of  the  let- 
ters, is  not  in  favor  of  the  diphthongal  pronunciation  of 
the  long  vowels. 

The  vocabulary  contains  but  few  traces  of  Norman  in- 
fluence, and  but  few  words  of  Latin  or  ecclesiastical  ori- 
gin ;  it  has  some  Scandinavian  words  and  idioms,  which 
have  led  critics  to  assign  the  residence  of  the  writer  to 
the  eastern  or  north-eastern  portion  of  England.  The 
syntax  is  quite  modern  in  its  character,  so  much  so  as 
to  present  little  difficulty  to  an  English  reader.  The 
author  seems  to  have  been  as  careful  of  his  syntax  as 
of  his  words,  and  in  these  resj^ects  to  have  sliown  a  care 
and  a  taste  quite  in  advance  of  his  supposed  time.  "  In 
fact,"  says  Marsh,^  "the  dialect  of  the  Ormulum  is  more 
easily  mastered  than  that  of  '  Piers  Ploughman,'  which  was 
written  more  than  a  century  later,  and  it  contains  fewer 
words  of  unknown  or  doubtful  signification.  It  is  more- 
over, especially  interesting  as  a  specimen  of  the  charac- 
ter and  internal  tendencies  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  language 
as  affected  by  more  advanced  civilization  and  culture, 
but  still  uncori-upted  by  any  considerable  mixture  of 
1  Marsh,  First  Series,  pp.  110,  111. 


92  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

foreign  ingredients ;  for  we  discover  no  traces  of  the 
Norman  element  in  the  vocabulary  and  but  few  in  the 
syntax  of  this  remarkable  work.  The  vocabulary  con- 
sists of  about  2,000  words,  exclusive  of  proper  names 
and  inflected  forms.  Among  these  I  am  unable  to  find 
a  single  word  of  Norman  French  origin,  and  scarcely 
ten  which  were  taken  directly  from  the  Latin."  And 
hardly  less  important  is  the  fact  stated  by  Marsh,  that 
the  whole  number  of  words  from  foreign  sources  pre- 
viously introduced  into  the  Anglo-Saxon,  and  found  in 
the  Ormulum,  does  not  exceed  sixty,  —  showing  the  re- 
markable purity  of  the  language  and  the  character  of 
the  changes  it  was  undergoing. 

The  proclamation  of  Henry  III.  in  1258,  though  brief, 
containing  in  all  only  some  300  words,  and  only  about 
140  different  words,  is  of  great  value,  in  showing  the 
condition  of  the  language  at  a  certain  date.  It  shows 
no  trace  of  Norman  influence  in  its  vocabulary,  save 
in  its  proper  names  and  official  titles,  but  it  shows  how 
the  old  grammatical  system  and  the  structure  of  the 
period  had  already  changed  into  very  nearly  the  mod- 
ern form.  Many  of  the  inflectional  endings  appear 
wholly,  or  in  part,  but  without  their  original  influence 
on  the  structure  of  the  sentence. 

The  reader  is  referred  to  Marsh's  Lectures,  Second 
Series,  for  a  full  notice  and  criticism  of  several  other 
memorials  of  the  English  of  the  thirteenth  century,  as 
"  The  Romance  of  Alexander,"  "  The  Owl  and  the  Night- 
ingale," '•  The  Geste  of  Kyng  Horn,"  "  The  Surtees  Psal- 
ter," and  "  The  Chronicle  of  Robert  of  Gloucester."  The 
first  of  these  works  exhibits  a  larger  influx  of  French 
words  than  we  have  hitherto  met,  sometimes  as  many 
as  six  per  cent,  of  the  whole  number,  while  the  syntax 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  93 

is  strictly  English.  The  Owl  and  the  Nightingale  is  a 
rhyming  poem  of  about  1800  verses  in  octosyllabic  me- 
tre. It  is  noted  as  the  first  narrative  poem  of  a  wholly 
imaginative  character  in  the  native  tongue,  and  for  the 
smoothness  and  finish  of  its  verse.  English  in  its  sub- 
ject, it  is  also  eminently  English  in  its  language.  A 
fine  edition  of  this  poem  has  been  published  by  the 
Percy  Society,  edited  by  Thomas  Wright,  with  some 
other  short  religious  poems  of  the  same  period.  In  the 
Geste  of  Kyng  Horn  the  number  of  French  words  is  only 
about  two  per  cent. ;  in  Robert  of  Gloucester,  four  or 
five,  though  many  words  of  this  class  were  first  intro- 
duced by  him  into  the  current  vocabulary.  The  Chron- 
icle of  Robert  of  Gloucester  is  worthy  of  notice  as  the 
most  ancient  professed  history  in  the  English  language. 
It  begins  as  usual  with  the  siege  of  Troy,  and  is  brought 
down  to  the  death  of  Henry  III.  in  1272. 

In  the  "  Reliquiae  Antiquae,"  edited  by  Wright  and 
Halliwell,  are  preserved  a  specimen  of  some  English 
sermons  of  the  beginning  of  the  thirteenth  century,  that 
compare  well  with  the  Ancren  Riwle,  in  point  of  Eng- 
lish idiom,  vocabulary,  and  syntax.  When  the  preach- 
er has  but  a  single  thought  to  express,  or  at  most  only 
two  or  three,  in  as  many  phrases,  the  idiom  is  quite 
modern.  But  sometimes  the  sentences  are  prolonged 
by  connections,  and  different  phrases  ai-e  strung  along 
quite  in  the  manner  of  an  inexperienced  schoolboy. 

Aside  from  the  general  tendency  to  simplify  inflec- 
tions and  orthography,  the  two  most  important  grammat- 
ical changes  that  may  be  regarded  as  becoming  fixed  in 
the  thirteenth  century  were  the  plural  of  verbs  in  e7i  in- 
stead of  the  old  Saxon  endings  in  5  (ih)  and  on;  and 
the  use  of  the  plural  pronoun  instead  of  the  singular  in 
6 


94  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

addressing  a  single  person.^  The  entire  vocabulary  of 
the  English  language  of  the  thirteenth  century,  so  far  as 
known  from  its  printed  literature,  consists  according  to 
Coleridge's  Glossarial  Index  of  about  8000  words,  of 
which  some  twelve  per  cent,  are  of  Latin  or  Romance 
derivation,  though  not  more  than  five  per  cent,  are 
found  employed  by  any  one  writer.  Of  course  the 
number  of  English  words  in  current  use  was  much 
gi'eater  than  the  number  here  indicated,  and  Marsh 
has  pointed  out  some  that  Coleridge  overlooked. 
1  Marsh,  Second  Series,  p.  258. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  95 


CHAPTER  Vin. 

ENGLISH  LAKGUAGE   IX   THE   FOURTEENTH   CENTURY. 

Ehymed  Chronicle  of  Robert  Manny nge  ^  Vocabulary  —  The 
Forms  of  the  Pronouns  —  Relation  to  Ballad  Poetry  —  Theo- 
ries as  to  Robin  Hood  — Thierry  —  Xame  of  a  Cycle  —  Metrical 
Romance  —  Time  and  Popularity  —  Late  Editions  —  Refer- 
ences —  Influence  on  tlie  Language  —  Political  Poems  —  Va- 
riety of  Measure  —  Wright's  Edition  —  Tendency  to  form  In- 
flections —  Example  from  the  "  Reliquia;  Antiquse  "  —  Date  to 
mark  the  Rise  and  Development  of  a  genuine  English  Lan- 
guage —  Connection  with  the  National  Life  —  Sources  whence 
Romance  words  were  Introduced  —  First  English  Poet  — 
Lawrence  ]\Iinot  —  Poems  —  Verse  —  Alliteration  falls  into 
Disuse  —  Recent  Revival  of  it  —  The  first  great  Prose  Writer 
—  Sir  John  Mandeville  —  Character  of  his  Work  —  Pliilolog- 
ical  Value  —  Orthography  —  Robert  Langlande  —  Estimation 
in  which  his  Poem  was  held  —  Verse  —  Spirit  —  Extract  from 
the  Sermon  of  Reason  —  The  Creed  of  "  Piers  Ploughman." 

The  first  production  that  merits  our  notice  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  fourteenth  century  is  the  rhymed  chron- 
icle of  Robert  Mannynge,  or  Robert  de  Brunne.  This 
work  is  a  translation,  the  first  part  of  the  Brut  of  "Waco, 
down  to  the  death  of  Cadwallader  in  689,  and  the  second 
part  of  the  Anglo-Norman  chronicle  of  Peter  de  Lang- 
toft,  a  continuation  of  the  first  down  to  the  death  of 
Edward  I.  The  style  of  this  work  is  said  by  Marsh  to 
be  superior  to  that  of  Robert  of  Gloucester  in  ease,  though 
not  in  grace  of  expression.     Though  little  can  be  said  of 


96  ELEMENTS   OF   TIIK 

the  literary  merits  of  the  work,  it  has  a  philological 
value,  as  showing  some  changes  in  the  language.  The 
vocabulary  is  enlarged  by  new  Romance  words,  and  the 
old  Saxon  ending  of  the  third  person  singular  of  the 
verb  in  5  (Jh)  is  changed  to  the  modern  form  in  s  ;  and 
the  forms  of  the  pronouns  ai"e  more  as  in  later  Engli.>li, — 
sdto,  afterwards  changed  to  she,  and  the  plural  ibrms, 
thei  and  titer} 

Campbell  sees  in  the  form  of  the  verse  traces  of  the 
ballad  poetry  of  the  time,  into  which  the  old  metrical 
romances  became  resolved.  It  is  certain  that  ballad 
poetry  was  now  widely  prevalent  especially  the  famous 
cycle  of  the  Robin  Hood  ballads.  The  allusion  to  these 
poems  in  the  "  Piers  Ploughman "  of  Langlande,  as 
better  known  to  idle  fellows  than  pious  songs,  is  evidence 
of  their  popularity. 

Of  the  many  disagreeing  theories  in  regard  to  the  his- 
torical character  of  Robin  Hood,  two  may  be  named,  — 
that  of  Thierry,  who  regards  him  as  the  hero  of  the  Saxon 
serfs,  that  continued  their  resistance  to  the  Norman  in- 
vaders, even  to  the  reign  of  Richard  Coeur  de  Lion,  and 
therefore  was  specially  dear  to  the  old  English  heart,  and 
justly  celebrated  in  patriotic  song;  the  other,  from  the  va- 
riety of  dates  assigned  him,  ranging  through  a  period  of 
not  less  than  three  hundred  years,  from  the  middle  of  the 
twelfth  to  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century,  denies  the 
existence  of  any  such  historical  personage,  and  assigns  the 
name  only  to  a  cycle  of  poems  illustrative  of  one  form 
of  English  life,  that,  pei'haps,  which  still  delights  in  field- 
sports  and  rustic  merry-makings.  It  is  possible  that  the 
true  theory  will  harmonize  the  two,  by  uniting  the  more 
important  elements  of  both.  In  any  case  the  value  of 
2  Marsh,  Second  Series,  p.  235. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  97 

these  ballads,  as  a  raeans  of  maintaining  a  true  native 
feeling,  a  genuine  home,  national  sentiment,  and  of  a 
language  among  the  people  best  expressive  of  it,  and 
which  no  foreign  influences  could  ever  suppress  or  stifle, 
can  hardly  be  over-estimated.  Some  value  also  should 
be  given  to  the  poetic  discipline  to  which  the  language 
was  thus  subjected ;  yet  of  far  greater  account  was  the 
pi-eservation  of  the  true  flavor  of  the  Saxon  element  in 
our  speech  and  character.  It  thus  contributed  greatly  to 
the  revival  of  poetry,  and  to  the  study  of  old  English 
at  the  close  of  the  last  century,  which  still  continues  with 
the  happiest  results  upon  the  purity  of  the  language. 

Other  important  agents  in  developing  the  language  of 
the  next  fifty  years,  preparatory  to  the  fully  awakened 
English  sentiment  and"  nationality,  and  to  the  creation 
of  a  distinctively  English  literature,  were  the  metrical 
romances,  the  political  songs,  and  many  short  satirical 
poems. 

As  already  noticed,  the  French  metrical  romances,  so 
popular  in  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries,  during  the 
latter  part  of  the  thirteenth  gradually  gave  way  to  pro- 
ductiotis  of  a  similar  chai'acter,  sometimes  merely  trans- 
lations, in  the  native  tongue.  English  metrical  romance 
was  at  the  height  of  its  popularity  during  the  first  part 
of  the  fourteenth  century,  and  continued  to  constitute 
the  larger  part  of  the  popular  literature  for  more  than 
a  hundred  years,  then  gave  place  to  prose  romance, 
■which  continued  to  hold  the  popular  favor  till  the  awak- 
ening of  a  purer  religious  sentiment  by  the  Reformation 
led  to  its  neglect.  Since  they  have  become  of  value  for 
philological  study,  a  great  number  of  the  old  metrical 
romances  have  been  offered  to  the  public,  carefully  edited 
by  different  scholars,  as  Ritson,  Ellis,  Weber,  and  others, 


98  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

and  by  different  learned  societies.  In  this  way  some 
seventy  or  more  have  been  published,  ranging  in  size 
from  three  hundred  to  eight  thousand  lines.  Of  these  a 
large  portion  belong  to  the  early  part  of  the  fourteenth 
century,  while  some,  perhaps,  were  composed  in  the  next 
century. 

For  detailed  sketches  of  English  metrical  romance, 
see  "  Percy's  Reliques  of  early  English  Poetry,"  the  first 
volume  of  "  Warton'3  History  of  English  Poetry,"  Ritson's 
dissertation  in  the  first  volume  of  his  "Ancient  English 
Metrical  Romancesv, "  so  Ellis,  Tyrwhitt,  Marsh,  and 
Craik. 

When  it  is  remembered  that  by  far  the  largest  part  of 
these  romances  were  translations  fi*om  the  French,  it  is  not 
surprising  that  the  French  forms  of  versification  should 
have  been  adopted,  and  that  many  French  words  should 
have  been  introduced  in  order  to  complete  the  measure 
of  the  lines,  if  for  no  other  reason.  The  wonder  rather 
is  that  so  few  words  were  introduced  from  this  source, 
and  that  so  much  facility  was  shown  in  the  use  and 
accommodation  of  English  words  to  this  versification. 
Although  the  literary  merits  of  these  old  romances  are 
not  of  a  very  high  order,  yet  some  of  them,  as  the  one 
entitled  "  Richard  Coeur  de  Lion,"  edited  by  Weber,  are 
by  no  means  deficient  even  in  this  respect.  They  ought 
not  to  be  overlooked  in  their  influence  upon  the  lan- 
guage, in  refining  its  uncouth  orthography,  and  develop- 
ing its  poetic  capabilities. 

The  political  and  other  poems  of  the  time  have  more 
of  an  English  spirit,  and  are  more  worthy  of  esteem  as 
the  first  essays  of  a  national  literature.  The  variety  of 
metre  is  very  great,  so  as  to  furnish  examples  of  almost 
every  form  of  the  poetic  measures  afterwards  employed. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  99 

No  better  discipline  could  have  been  devised  for  the 
nascent  language  and  literature  than  was  thus  aflForded. 

The  political  songs,  edited  by  Wright,  and  printed  for 
the  Camden  Society,  contain  specimens  of  English  songs 
of  the  successive  reigns  of  Henry  HI.,  Edward  I.  and 
II.,  that  are  finely  illustrative  of  the  changes  the  lan- 
guage was  passing  through.  One  of  these,  composed 
upon  the  death  of  Edward  I.,  shows  a  great  variety  in 
the  grammatical  forms  of  the  verbs,  especially  in  the 
singular  number ;  the  old  forms  still  in  use,  and  the  new, 
as  it  were,  in  competition.  The  poem  on  the  king's 
breaking  his  confirmation  of  Magna  Charta  shows  a  de- 
cided change  in  this  short  interval  in  favor  of  the  later 
forms.  In  different  stanzas  are  found  different  forms  for 
the  plural  of  the  present  tense  of  the  verb  ;  in  one  end- 
ing in  "  en"  and  in  another,  as  in  later  English,  accord- 
ing to  the  convenience  of  the  measure.  The  time  of 
Edward  II.  was  not  favorable  to  literary  production,  or 
the  development  of  a  national  spirit,  and  little  advance 
was  made. 

A  few  writers  of  this  period  were  in  the  habit  of 
uniting  words,  particularly  the  negatives  and  pronouns, 
with  their  verbs,  much  as  we  may  suppose  the  inflections 
in  grammar  were  originally  introduced.  This  practice 
was  begun  in  the  preceding  century,  and  was  continued 
through  the  fourteenth,  but  never  became  universal,  and 
was  effectually  checked  by  the  usage  of  the  great  authors 
and  by  the  introduction  of  printing.  Such  combinations 
can  only  arise  in  a  spoken  language,  and  require  time  to 
be  so  completely  fixed  by  contraction  as  to  become  per- 
manent. 

The  following  extracts  are  from  an  interlocutory  poem, 
supposed,  from  the  writing  of  the  manuscript,  to  have 


100  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

been  written  at  the  beginning  of  the  fourteenth  cen- 
tury, and  printed  in  the  "  lleliquia;  Antiquai  "  ^  already 
cited :  — 

"  Clericus.  —  Damishel,  reste  ^  well. 
Puella.  —  Sir,  welcome,  by  Saint  Michel. 
Clericus.  —  Wer  esty  ^  Sire,  wer  esty  dame? 

Mome  Ellwis.  —  A,  Son,  wat  saystu  ^  ?  " 

This  method  of  agglutination,  as  philologists  term  it, 
was  frequently  resorted  to  by  Langlande,  but  soon  after 
fell  into  disuse.  Indeed,  he  was  the  only  author  of  much 
note,  that  seems  to  have  practised  it. 

The  year  1350  is  chosen  as  the  most  convenient  to 
mark  the  rise  and  development  of  a  genuine  English 
language.  Of  course  such  an  event  is  not  the  result  of 
a  single  year,  but  of  many  ;  and  this  date  is  given  as,  on 
the  whole,  the  nearest  point  of  time  that  can  well  be 
given.  In  the  notice  of  the  last  fifty  years,  attention 
has  been  called  to  the  busy  preparation  in'progress  to  de- 
velop a  language  and  literature,  essentially  English  in 
their  character  ;  and  all  that  was  needed  was  the  full 
hearty  manifestation  of  national  life,  that  should  take 
up  the  great  mass  of  material,  and  mould  it  into  form 
and  beauty  by  a  living  organic  process.  The  material 
so  taken  up  and  transfused  with  life  was  to  be  neither 
Saxon,  nor  Norman,  nor  Latin,  but  English  :  the  metal 
wrought  out  in  many  mines  was  to  become  the  current 
coin  of  the  realm,  bearing  the  national  insignia,  and  to 
share  in  the  national  glories. 

1 1.  145.  8  is  thr. 

2  rest  thee.  <  sayest  thou. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  101 

"  Whatever  existed,"  says  Marsh,i  "  in  the  English 
tongue,  whether  by  translation  or  by  original  composi- 
tion, now  became  a  part  of  the  general  patrimony  of  the 
English  people,  and  there,  as  everywhei-e  else,  the  learn- 
ing, the  poetry,  the  philosophy,  which  had  been  slowly 
gathered  on  the  summits  of  social  life,  and  had  been  the 
peculiar  nutriment  of  the  favored  classes,  now  flowed 
down  to  a  lower  level,  and  refreshed,  as  with  the  waters 
of  a  fountain  of  youth,  the  humble  ranks  of  the  English 
people.  Native  poets,  composing  original  works  in  their 
own  tongue,  would  naturally  use  the  poetic  diction  in 
which  the  productions  of  French  literature  had  been 
clothed,  in  assuming  an  English  dress  ;  for  these  were 
their  only  vernacular  models.  But  English  rhymers 
were  still  generally  acquainted  with  Frencli,  and  that 
language,  as  we  have  seen,  had  already  attained  a  culture 
which  eminently  fitted  it  for  literary  purposes,  and  made 
it,  as  the  Latin  has  always  been,  a  store-house  of  poetic 
wealtli  in  words  as  well  as  in  thought,  and  a  convenient 
resource  to  versifiers  who  were  in  vain  struggling  to 
find  adequate  expressions  in  the  vocabuhiry  of  Saxon 
English.  The  English  middle  classes,  who  were  now 
for  the  first  time  admitted  to  the  enjoyment  of  literary 
pleasures,  accepted  as  a  consecrated  speech  the  dialect 
employed  by  their  authors  and  translators,  without  in- 
quiring into  the  etymology  of  its  constituents,  and  thus, 
in  the  course  of  one  generation,  a  greater  number  of 
French  words  Avere  introduced  into  English  a  erse,  and 
initiated  as  lawful  members  of  the  poetical  guild,  than  in 
nearly  three  centuries  which  had  elapsed  since  the  Nor- 
man conquest.  The  foreign  matter  became  thoroughly 
assimilated  nutriment  to  the  speech,  the  mind,  and  the 

1  Second  Series,  pp.  265,  266. 


102  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

heart  of  the  fragmentary  people  who  had  now  combined 
in  an  entire  organized  commonweaUh ;  and  though  the 
newly-adopted  Romance  words  were  not  indigenous,  yet 
they  were  acknowledged  and  felt  to  be  as  genuine  Eng- 
lish as  those  whose  descent  from  the  Gothic  stock  was 
most  unequivocal." 

But  it  was  not  by  poetry  alone  that  Romance  words 
were  at  this  time  introduced  into  the  language.  They 
were  the  common  gift  of  the  learned  professions,  of  the 
various  sciences,  and  trades,  that  all  now  shared  in  the 
newly-awakened  national  life,  and  all  required  a  larger 
vocabulaiy.  The  sciences  and  trades  that  were  now 
introduced  from  abroad  brought  in  their  own  technical 
phraseology,  soon  to  lose  its  technical  character,  and  to 
enter  into  the  common  language  of  the  time.  In  these 
ways,  more  than  through  the  poets,  were  foreign  words 
incorporated  into  the  popular  speech. 

The  first  name  in  the  new  era  is  Lawrence  Minot, 
who  wrote  a  few  short  poems,  ten  or  eleven  in  all,  to 
celebrate  the  victories  of  Edward  III.  He  is  not  unaptly 
styled  by  Campbell  the  Tyrtseus  of  English  song.  His 
poems  breathe  a  truly  martial  and  at  the  same  time 
English  spirit ;  and  exhibit  more  of  elegance  and  force  of 
expression  than  had  hitherto  been  attained.  They  are 
written  in  not  less  than  ten  different  measures,  and,  true 
to  the  spirit  of  national  unity,  unite  Saxon  alliteration 
and  Norman  rhyme.  This  example  of  uniting  so  rad- 
ically unlike  forms  of  versification  was  not  followed. 
Langlande  and  his  school  adhered  to  the  old  Saxon 
rules,  while  Chaucer  and  his  followers  adopted  Romance 
metres.  But  the  result  was  not  long  doubtful.  After 
Langlande  and  his  immediate  successors  and  followers, 
alliteration  was  neglected,  save  as  an   occasional   orna- 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  103 

ment.  It  is  nevertheless  so  true  to  the  spirit  of  the 
Saxon  element  of  our  language,  that,  with  the  revival 
of  a  more  thoroughly  English  taste,  during  the  last  half- 
century,  has  come  quite  a  tendency  to  revive  in  part  this 
old  essential  to  the  verse  of  our  ancestors.  Not  a  few 
of  our  best  modern  poets  resort  to  its  use  to  add  a  charm 
to  their  works,  among  whom  may  be  reckoned  Tenny- 
son and  Mrs.  Browning. 

The  first  great  prose  writer  in  the  new  era  was  Sir 
John  Mandeville.  His  work  was  published  in  1354,  and 
claimed  to  be  a  record  of  travels  in  the  East,  but  well 
stored  with  miracles  from  legends,  and  marvellous  tales 
from  romantic  fiction,  duly  declared  authentic  by  the 
sanction  of  the  Pope.  His  work  seems  to  have  had 
much  the  same  place  in  his  day  as  the  "  Tales  of  the 
Arabian  Knights  "  among  the  children  of  a  later  gen- 
eration. It  had  a  great  circulation.  Of  no  book,  with 
the  exception  of  the  Scriptures,  are  more  copies  to 
be  found  in  manuscript  of  the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth 
centuries.  This  fact  gives  it  for  us  a  great  philological 
value,  not  only  as  showing  the  condition  of  the  language, 
but  as  an  important  means  of  giving  currency  to  words 
the  author  first  introduced  into  English.  The  volume 
edited  by  Halliwell,  and  printed  at  London  in  1839, 
contains  but  316  coarsely  printed  octavo  pages,  including 
the  numerous  illustrations.  "  Although  the  style  and 
grammatical  structure  of  Mandeville  are  idiomatic,  yet 
the  proportion  of  words  of  Latin  and  French  origin 
employed  by  him  in  his  straightforward,  unadorned 
narrative,  is  greater  than  that  found  in  the  works  of 
Langlande,  Chaucer,  Gower,  or  any  other  English  poet 
of  that  century."  ^     And  what  is  the  more  remarkable 

1  Marsh,  Second  Series,  p.  268. 


104  ELEMENTS   OF  TOE 

is  the  fact  that  so  large  a  part  of  the  words  he  thus 
introduced  into  the  huiguage  have  retained  tlieir  place. 
Out  of  the  one  hundred  and  seventy-four  new  words 
which  Marsh  finds  in  about  an  eighth  part  of  (he  volume, 
only  six  or  seven  are  not  in  use  now  and  in  the  same 
sense.  At  the  same  rate  he  must  have  added  in  this 
small  volume  not  less  than  fourteen  hundred  words  of 
Latin  and  Romance  origin  to  the  spoken  J]nglish  of  his 
time.  It  is  undoubtedly  true  that  Mandeville  did  more 
than  any  one  else  to  introduce  this  class  of  words  into 
the  language.  His  familiarity  with  French  and  Latin, 
and  lack  of  acquaintance  with  the  stores  of  English 
speech,  in  consequence  of  his  absence  from  the  country 
and  intercourse  with  those  who  for  the  most  part  used 
French,  and  the  plain  good  sense  of  the  man  in  choosing 
a  simple  unaffected  style,  at  once  explain  the  number 
and  the  fitness  of  the  words  he  thus  brought  into  the 
language.  The  orthography  is  in  some  respects  more 
modern,  and  in  others  less  so  than  is  to  be  found  in  other 
works  of  the  time.  The  pronoun  theii-  is  not  titer,  as  in 
some  writers  before  him,  but  the  older,  her  or  here.  The 
German  sch  is  found  for  sh,  and  the  Saxon  character, 
which  in  some  authors  is  written  as  g  and  y,  is  invariably 
z,  as  zee  for  ye  or  gee,  and  azen  for  agen  ;  so  zif  for  gif, 
the  later  if.  Yet  on  the  whole  the  author  is  more  easily 
read  by  those  little  acquainted  with  old  English  than 
any  that  have  preceded  him,  and  than  some  of  the  later 
poets. 

The  earliest  known  original  poem  of  any  extent  was 
the  work  of  Robert  Langlande,  as  it  is  generally  sup- 
posed, though  some  doubt  remains  as  to  the  real  author. 
This  was  given  to  the  Avorld  between  1360  and  1370, 
and  called  "  Visions  of  Piers  Ploughman,  or  Peter  the 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  105 

Ploughboy."  Professing  to  give  a  series  of  visions  that 
passed  before  him  while  asleep  on  the  Malvern  hills,  he 
indulges  in  a  vigorous  satire  upon  the  abuses  of  the 
Papacy,  the  dissolute  lives  of  the  Romish  clergy,  and  the 
corruption  of  society.  The  work  was  widely  popular, 
its  allegory  well  fitted  to  interest  the  common  mind,  and 
its  general  influence  eminently  favorable  to  the  efforts 
soon  to  be  made  by  WyclifFe  and  other  reformers.  So 
valuable  was  it  esteemed  in  this  respect  that  three  edi- 
tions were  published  two  centuries  later  to  aid  the  Prot- 
estant Reformation.  There  was,  however,  nothing  di- 
rectly Protestant  in  the  work,  but  a  calm  allegorical 
exposition  of  the  evils  of  society,  with  a  view  to  reveal 
their  causes,  with  just  enough  of  humor  and  satire  to  give 
interest  and  zest  to  the  story,  and  to  make  it  popular. 

The  verse  is  without  rhyme,  and  the  system  of  allit- 
eration is  strictly  followed.  This  sometimes  interferes 
with  the  freedom  and  ease  of  the  verse,  and  occasions 
the  use  of  archaic  forms  of  expression,  and  of  many 
words  which  have  since  become  obsolete.  As  would  be 
expected  from  the  verse,  there  are  less  Romance  words 
than  in  Mandeville,  while  the  proportion  of  foreign  words 
is  about  the  same  as  in  Chaucer,  and  the  syntax  gener- 
ally is  not  much  unlike  his.  "While  the  moods  and  the 
tenses  of  the  verbs  had  acquired  nearly  their  present 
force,  their  inflection  was  more  according  to  the  old 
Saxon  forms.  But  the  general  spirit  of  the  work,  the 
thought,  is  P^nglish,  rather  than  Saxon  or  Norman.  It  is 
on  the  whole  a  hearty  English  work,  and  as  such  had  in 
its  day,  and  still  deserves,  an  honorable  place  in  the  re- 
gards of  men. 

The  following  brief  extracts  from  the  "  Sermon  of 
Reason,"  Wright's  edition.  Vol.  I.,  pp.  79  and  80,  will 


106  ELEMENTS   OF   THE 

show  at  once  the  spirit  of  the  author,  his  English  idiom, 
and  use  of  Saxon  forms :  — 

"  And  slthen  be  prechede  prelates. 
And  precstcs  togideres, 
That  ye  preehen  to  the  peplc, 
Prevc  it  on  yowselve, 
And  dooth  it  in  dede, 
It  shall  drawe  yow  to  goode  ; 
If  ye  leven  as  ye  leren  us. 
We  shul  leve  yow  the  bettre. 

And  ye  that  soke  Seynt  James 
And  Seyntes  of  Rome, 
Seketh  Seynt  Truthe ; 
For  he  may  save  yow  alle." 

This  passage,  however,  does  not  accurately  represent 
the  orthography  of  the  author,  as  Wright's  edition  follows 
that  of  Crowley,  published  in  1550,  much  altered  by  the 
printer. 

Another  work,  in  the  same  style  substantially,  was 
published  some  thirty  years  later,  called  the  "  Creed  of 
Piers  Ploughman."  This  is  believed  to  have  been  writ- 
ten by  one  of  the  followers  of  WycliiFe.  In  this  Piers 
Ploughman  is  no  longer  an  allegorical  personage,  but  the 
representative  of  the  English  peasant  rising  up  to  judge 
and  act  for  himself,  —  and  the  Church  is  the  special  object 
of  assault.  On  this  account  the  work  was  soon  pro- 
scribed, and  never  obtained  much  circulation.  In  its  es- 
sential features  of  language  and  style  it  is  an  imitation 
of  the  work  of  Lan^lande. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  107 


CHAPTER  IX. 

FOURTEENTH  CENTURY   CONTINUED.  —  WYCLIFFE   AND 
CHAUCER. 

Character  and  Culture  of  John  de  Wycliffe  —  Translation  of  the 
Bible  —  Edition  of  Forshall  and  Madden  —  Reference  to  Marsh 

—  Grammatical  Changes  —  Chaucer  —  As  a  Literary  Man  — 
His  English  Heart  —  Services  to  the  Language  —  Marsh's 
Opinion  —  Language  of  Chaucer  —  French  words  employed 

—  Chaucer's  Verse  —  The  final  e  —  Peculiarities  in  the  forms 
of  Verbs  —  General  Simplification  of  the  Language  —  No  new 
"Words  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  revived  after  this  —  Tlie  Process 
of  Dialectic  Eegeneration  —  John  Gower  — Value  of  his  Works 
to  the  Language  —  The  Prose  of  the  Fourteentli  Century  — 
Chaucer's  Prose  —  Wycliffe — Sermon  against  Miracle  Plays 

—  The  Language  now  settled  —  Limit  of  future  Changes. 

The  man  who  did  the  most  for  the  religious  culture  of 
the  people,  and  for  the  language  as  a  means  of  e.xpress- 
ing  moral  and  religious  sentiment,  was  John  de  Wycliffe. 
Possessed  of  an  uncommonly  fine  mind  that  won  him 
respect  and  admiration  at  the  University,  thoroughly  dis- 
ciplined in  the  scholastic  culture,  classic  and  philosophical, 
of  his  time,  with  a  heart  thoroughly  devoted  to  the  inter- 
ests of  religion,  and  a  determined  purpose  that  no  oppo- 
sition could  intimidate,  he  was  prepared  as  few  men  of 
any  age  could  be,  and  at  this,  the  best  possible  time  for 
the  developing  language,  to  use  it  with  power,  and  to 


108  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

bring  out  its  liidJen  stores  of  expression,  or  to  add  to 
them  from  the  common  treasuries  of  Latin  and  Romance, 
as  should  be  found  necessary.  The  greatest  work  of 
WyclifFe  and  his  followers  who  worked  under  his  direc- 
tion, was  the  translation  of  the  Bible,  now  for  the  first 
time  put  into  an  English  dress.  This  was  widely  circu- 
lated, and  had  great  influence  in  forming  the  religious 
and  theological  dialect,  that  has  in  substance  continued  to 
the  present  time.  This  version  furnished  the  language 
of  the  later  versions  of  Tyndale  and  others,  and  finally 
of  the  standard  version  now  in  use.  The  New  Testa- 
ment is  supposed  to  have  been  wholly  from  Wycliffe's 
hand,  and  is  of  more  uniform  diction  and  grammar,  and 
had  a  proportionate  greater  influence.  Wycliffe  died  in 
1384,  and  these  translations  are  supposed  to  have  been 
made  but  two  or  three  years  previous.  It  is  only  since 
1850  that  the  entire  version  has  been  offered  to  the  pub- 
lic from  the  press.  For  this  the  world  is  indebted  to  the 
painstaking  labors  of  two  English  scholars,  —  Forshall 
and  Madden.  Two  different  texts  are  printed,  the  older 
of  1380,  and  a  later  of  1390,  revised  by  Purley.  The 
revision  was  carefully  made,  and  has  a  value  from  show- 
ing the  marked  progress  of  the  language  during  this 
short  period. 

The  reader  is  referred  to  Marsh's  Lectures,  Second 
Series,  for  a  more  minute  examination  of  these  versions, 
and  the  influence  and  character  of  Wycliffe.  One  or  two 
grammatical  changes  only  will  here  be  noticed.  The 
present  participle  ending  in  eiide  assumed  the  form  of 
ing,  while  these  versions  were  in  progress,  which  it  has 
since  preserved.  The  older  versions  have  the  old,  the 
later  the  new,  form.  The  Saxon  feminine  ending  ster,  is 
changed  to  the  Norman  esse.     In  general,  with  some  ex- 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  109 

ceptions,  the  conjugation  of  the  verbs  in  Wycliffe's  trans- 
lations corresponds  very  nearly  with  our  own.  Aside 
from  the  grammatical  forms  of  interest  to  the  scholar  in 
tracing  the  changes  of  the  language,  these  versions  are 
interesting  as  a  storehouse  of  hearty  English  words,  and 
of  the  roots  of  many  forms  now  in  use,  and  as  a  means 
of  reviving  a  true  and  vigorous  speech. 

The  best  representative  of  the  language  during  the  last 
quarter  of  the  fourteenth  century  was  undoubtedly  the 
poet  Chaucer,  so  deservedly  called  the  Father  of  English 
literature.  He  was,  in  the  strict  sense  of  the  word,  a  lit- 
erary man.  He  had  a  thorough  practical  acquaintance  with 
men  of  all  grades,  from  the  highest  to  the  lowest,  and 
had  a  hearty  sympathy,  as  wide  as  was  his  acquaintance. 
At  home  and  abroad,  in  the  various  relations  of  public 
and  private  life,  in  peace  and  in  war,  he  had  enjoyed  op- 
portunities of  general  culture,  such  as  are  the  privilege 
of  but  few  men.  Add  to  this  a  mind  of  rare  order,  a  true 
genius  for  poetry,  a  hearty  love  of  whatever  is  beautiful 
in  nature,  or  genial  and  noble  in  man,  and  we  have  an 
author  of  rarest  accomplishments,  and  one  who  turned 
all  to  the  best  account.  He  had  command  of  all  the  re- 
sources of  the  language,  and  a  genuine  English  mind  and 
heart  to  use  them.  He  seemed  to  have  anticipated  the 
future  greatness  and  glory  of  the  English  name,  and  to 
have  devoted  himself  to  the  work  of  improving  its  lan- 
guage and  literature  with  all  the  interest  of  a  true  patriot 
as  well  as  of  the  accomplished  scholar.  He  realized, 
too,  better  than  most  men  —  only  as  the  highest  order  of 
literary  men  do  —  what  is  truly  essential  and  therefore 
permanent  in  literature ;  and  so  he  freely  passed  by,  as 
unsuited  to  his  purpose,  many  events  and  scenes  that 
would  have  absorbed  the  thought  and  attention  of  ordi- 
7 


110  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

nary  minds.  For  instance,  in  that  age  so  much  given 
to  war  and  chivahy,  he  never  writes  a  line  in  praise  of 
either  ;  he  chooses  rather  themes  of  common  and  univer- 
sal interest  to  mankind,  and  thus  secured  for  himself  his 
true  place  in  the  literary  world. 

Chaucer  first  employed  himself  in  translating  from  the 
French  into  English  some  of  the  more  popular  works  of 
French  literature,  and  in  this  way  prepared  himself  for 
original  composition.  Among  these  the  most  important 
was  the  '•  Romaunt  of  the  Rose." 

Considering  the  character  of  the  existing  English 
and  French  languages,  it  has  been  noted  as  a  proof  of 
Chaucer's  English  sentiment,  that  he  introduced  so  few 
French  words  into  his  translation.  These  were  oftenest 
such  as  the  necessities  of  his  measure  required,  and  in 
these  cases  he  has  often  transferred  rather  than  translated 
the  rhymes.  "Notwithstanding  the  necessity  thus  im- 
posed upon  Chaucer,  as  the  translator  of  highly  imagina- 
tive poems  into  a  tongue  hitherto  without  literary  culture, 
and  possessed  of  no  special  vocabulary  conventionally 
dedicated  to  poetical  use,  he  was  very  sparing  in  the 
employment  of  French  words  not  belonging  to  the  class 
which  I  have  just  referred  to ;  and  he  shows  exquisite 
taste  and  judgment  in  his  selection  from  the  vocabulary 
of  both  languages,  whenever  the  constraint  of  metre  and 
rhyme  left  him  free  to  choose.  Hence,  though  the  '  Ro- 
maunt of  the  Rose,'  and  his  other  works  of  a  similar 
character,  are  admirably  faithful  as  translations,  their 
diction,  which  is  an  anthology  of  the  best  words  and 
forms  of  both  languages,  is  more  truly  poetical  than  that 
of  the  originals.  In  the  hands  of  Chaucer,  the  English 
language  advanced,  at  one  bound,  to  that  superiority 
over  the  French,  which  it  has  ever  since  maintained  as 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  Ill 

a  medium  of  the  expression  of  poetical  imagery  and 
thought."  ^ 

The  language  of  Chaucer  was  thus  the  select  English, 
or  spoken  language  of  his  time,  and  the  superiority  of  his 
mind  is  as  clearly  evinced  in  his  choice  words  as  in  his 
poetic  imagery.  The  two  necessarily  go  together.  The 
best  and  clearest  thinkers  are  those  who,  other  things 
being  equal,  use  language  in  the  best  way,  —  in  fact  are 
the  best  thinkers  often,  because  of  their  command  of  lan- 
guage, since  words  are  necessary  to  thought.  The  French 
words  employed  by  Chaucer,  with  the  single  exception 
referred  to,  were  such  as  were  already  current,  with  a 
clearly  defined  sense  in  the  English  of  his  time. 

These  general  remarks  upon  his  diction  will  apply  with 
full  force  to  his  greatest  work,  the  "  Canterbury  Tales." 
The  subjects  of  these  tales,  the  various  charactei's  intro- 
duced, were  all  eminently  suited  to  the  ends  of  true  litex*- 
ature,  and  to  the  culture  of  the  language.  If  "Wycliffe 
developed  its  religious  and  theological  diction,  it  was  for 
Chaucer  to  set  forth  its  poetical,  and  perhaps  still  more 
the  dialect  of  social  life,  the  common  every-day  speech 
of  the  people,  and  by  the  popularity  of  his  works,  to  give 
it  permanence.  Subsequent  poets  and  other  writers  seem 
to  have  fully  appreciated  the  valuable  services  of  Chau- 
cer. His  friend  and  disciple  Occleve  called  him  "  the 
first  finder  of  our  fair  language."  Lydgate,  in  the  next 
generation,  celebrates  him  as  his  master,  as  chief  poet 
of  Britain, 

"  He  that  was  of  making  soverain, 
Whom  all  this  lande  of  right  ought  prefer, 
Sith  of  our  language  he  was  the  lode-ster." 

1  Marsh,  Second  Series,  pp.  389,  390. 


112  ELEMENTS   OF   THE 

And  Spenser,  two  centuries  later,  hails  him  as  "  the  well 
of  English  undefiled."  ^ 

Different  critics  are  by  no  means  agreed  as  yet  upon 
the  pronunciation  of  all  the  words  employed  by  Chaucer 
in  his  verse,  especially  those  ending  in  e.  The  disagree- 
ment is  doubtless  due,  in  great  measure,  to  the  want  of  a 
carefully  revised  edition,  which  should  be  made  from  the 
earliest  existing  manuscripts  by  an  editor  thoroughly  at 
home  in  the  forms  of  the  language  as  then  used,  so  that 
he  would  be  competent  to  correct  the  many  errors  which 
have  crept  into  the  text  from  transcribing.  The  follow- 
ing notice  of  some  of  the  peculiarities  of  Chaucer's  lan- 
guage, as  distinguished  from  our  English  of  the  present 
day,  is  taken  mainly  from  Craik's  Outlines,^  with  some 
slight  change  and  abridgment. 

First  in  regard  to  the  e  ending  so  many  of  his  words, 
and  often  if  not  always  forming  a  syllable  which  has  now 
disappeared  in  great  part  from  the  spelling  as  well  as 
from  the  pronunciation  of  the  language.  In  words  bor- 
rowed from  the  French  it  is,  as  pointed  out  by  Tyr- 
whitt,  the  e  feminine  of  that  language,  still  retained  in 
French  spelling  and  prosody,  though  not  now  pronounced 
in  English,  and  only  written  when  its  presence  is  neces- 
sary to  indicate  the  sound  of  a  preceding  vowel  or  con- 
sonant. In  nouns  of  native  origin  it  is,  in  many  cases, 
the  representative  or  remnant  of  the  old  Saxon  ending 
in  a,  e,  or  u,  as  name  for  nama,  and  retained  to  give  the 
long  sound  to  the  preceding  vowel.  In  other  native 
nouns  it  is  the  e  of  the  old  dative  singular,  or  genitive 
plural,  or  nominative  plural  in  adjectives,  or  the  sign  of 
the  definite  form  of  the  adjective,  —  the  same  in  Saxon 
as  in  German,  or  of  the  adverb  as  distinguished  from  the 
1  See  Craik,  i.  p.  250.  2  pp.  105-107. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  113 

adjective,  or  of  the  superlative  of  the  adjective  as  distin- 
guished from  the  adverb.  In  many  cases  it  may  have 
been  used  simply  to  give  the  same  sound  to  the  preceding 
vowel. 

Other  peculiarities  are  the  following :  — 

The  substantive  verb  to  hen,  our  to  he,  was  inflected  as 
is  the  singular  of  the  indicative  now ;  in  the  plural  the 
form  throughout  was  hen  or  aren.  So  in  the  imperfect 
the  form  was  weren. 

Our  to  have  was  to  haven,  or  to  han,  inflected  in  the 
present  by  have,  havest  or  hast,  haveth  or  hath,  and  by 
haven  or  han,  in  |he  plural.  Imperfect  hadde,  haddest, 
hadde,  singular,  and  hadden  in  the  plural. 

So 

Singular.  Plural. 

Present,        shal  shidlen 

wil  or  wol  willen  or  wollen 

can  or  con  connen 

may  or  mow  mowen 

Imperfect,     shidde  shulden 

wolde  wolden 

coud  couden 
might  or  moughte      mighten  or  moughten. 

The  pronoun  /  as  at  present,  sometimes  Ich  or  Iche  ; 
ye  for  the  nominative,  you  for  the  accusative  ;  they,  some- 
times hi,  the  old  form  them,  usually  hem,  much  like  the 
colloquial  '■'em;"  and  their  was  usually  hire,  pronounced 
as  one  syllable,  which  was  also  the  form  of  the  adjective 
pronoun  her,  and  the  accusative  of  the  personal  pronoun 
she. 

The  principle  characteristics  of  the  English  of  this 
period,  as  illustrated  in  Chaucer's  works  in  verse  and 
prose,  were   the   same   that  were   to   continue   till   the 


114  ELEMENTS   OF   THE 

present  forms  in  use  became  fully  settleil,  namely,  the 
gradual  dropping  off  of  such  of  the  old  forms  as  re- 
mained, and  the  tendency  to  draw  from  the  French 
and  Latin.  The  original  ending  of  the  infinitive  in 
an  had  been  changed  to  en,  and  now  often  appeared  in  e. 
The  inflection  of  the  tenses  was  falling  off,  and  occasion- 
ally the  modern  forms  were  employed.  The  final  e  in 
both  vei'bs  and  nouns  was  often  dropped  in  pronunciation, 
though  still  written  for  a  time.  The  imperfect  lovede, 
was  pronounced,  and  erelong  written  loved.  The  jwets, 
as  Chaucer,  felt  at  liberty  to  use  both  forms  according 
to  their  convenience. 

From  this  time  forward,  no  new  words  were  revived 
from  the  old  Saxon  speech,  only  such  as  were  current  in 
the  popular  speech,  but  not  yet  introduced  into  litei-ary 
works,  would  occasionally  be  brought  forward,  but  the 
additions  were,  for  the  most  part,  from  foreign  sources. 
Of  the  words  used  by  Chaucer  and  Langlande,  which 
have  since  become  obsolete,  the  greater  portion  were 
those  of  native  origin.  The  French  or  Romance  words 
as  foreign  to  the  language  were  selected,  or  at  least  used 
with  more  care.  Though  thoroughly  naturalized  and 
welcomed  to  a  hospitable  home,  there  was  evidently  an 
instinctive  feeling  of  race  that  was  true  to  the  vital  as- 
similating power. 

Of  the  other  great  poet,  whose  name  is  often  mentioned 
with  that  of  Chaucer,  John  Gower,  little  need  be  said  in 
this  connection.  Inferior  as  a  poet  and  a  man  to  Chau- 
cer, his  influence  was  comparatively  less ;  his  language, 
where  English,  is  inferior,  more  archaic,  not  up  to  the 
progressive  spirit  of  his  time.  Only  a  portion  of  his 
works  were  in  English.  These  were  of  value,  however, 
to  the  written  language,  in  consequence  of  the  wide  cir- 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  115 

culation  of  his  works.  In  his  own  time,  and  in  the  next 
century,  and  even  later,  his  "  Confessio  Amantis  "  was 
highly  esteemed  when  Chaucer  was  neglected ;  just  as 
at  a  later  day  Ben  Jensen  superseded  Shakspeare. 

Though  poetry  was  the  popular  form  of  literature  in 
the  fourteenth  century,  it  was  not  altogether  deficient  in 
prose.  The  best  specimen  is  doubtless  that  of  Chaucer, 
as  illustrated  in  his  "  Persones  Tale."  Some  passages 
are  quite  racy,  and  show  a  fresh,  hearty  vigor,  that  is 
hai'dly  surpassed  during  the  next  century.  The  lan- 
guage was  used  with  no  little  power  by  Wycliffe  and  his 
followers,  and  in  the  political  discussions  of  the  time.  A 
treatise  against  miracle  plays,  near  the  close  of  this  cen- 
tury, printed  in  the  "  Reliquite  Antiquas,"  has  a  rude 
strength  and  vigor  of  thought  that  are  worthy  of  our 
notice,  but  the  language  is  evidently  too  much  for  the 
writer.  He  cannot  handle  it  with  ease,  however  earnest 
he  may  have  been  in  his  convictions. 

The  English  language,  considered  as  the  result  of 
various  physical  and  intellectual  elements,  was  now 
established.  The  changes  subsequently  made  were  due 
to  causes  already  in  operation  and  to  such  intellectual 
and  moral  influences  as  might  be  exerted  on  it  from 
without.  The  rejection  of  inflections,  and  the  reduction 
of  its  orthography  to  a  similar  and  unifoi'm  system,  con- 
tinued for  the  next  three  centuries,  steadily  decreasing 
with  the  necessity  in  order  to  the  greatest  simplicity  and 
power  of  individual  words  ;  while  a  true  English  idiom 
gradually  became  more  and  more  flexible  in  the  spoken 
language  of  the  people.  The  latter  process  was  disturbed 
by  the  revival  of  the  classics  and  the  introduction  of  a 
large  number  of  Latin  words  at  the  time  of  the  refor- 
mation, but  only  temporarily. 


IIG  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE     ENGLISH     LANGUAGE    IN   THE    FIFTEENTH   CENTURY. 

General  Spirit  of  this  Century — James  I.  of  Scotland — Lyd- 
gate  —  Bishop  Pecock  —  Sir  John  Fortescue  —  Malory's  Morte 
Arthur  —  Its  Prose  —  The  Paston  Letters  —  William  Caxton, 
the  great  English  Printer — Character  of  the  Works  he  printed 
—  The  Gallicisms  of  his  Style  — End  of  Old  Enghsh  — Ex- 
tract from  Hallam. 

The  century  succeeding  Chaucer,  the  fifteenth,  was 
little  favorable  to  literature  or  to  language  in  conse- 
quence of  the  civil  dissensions  of  the  times.  The  spec- 
imens of  prose  and  verse  extant  show  that  the  changes 
for  the  better,  so  rapid  in  the  former  period,  were  greatly 
hindered,  yet  not  wholly  so.  A  few  names  are  worthy 
of  mention,  as  James  I.  of  Scotland,  Lydgate,  Bishop 
Pecock,  and  Chief  Justice  Fortescue.  The  first  two  ex- 
hibit a  good  command  of  the  laws  of  versification,  and 
James  I.  has  a  good  deal  of  merit  as  a  poet,  though  his 
orthography  was  not  such  as  to  improve  our  English  dic- 
tion. Lydgate  was  a  man  of  great  learning,  well  versed 
in  French  and  Italian  literature,  and  a  most  prolific  writer. 
In  this  way  he  did  something  to  improve  the  language 
by  additions  to  its  vocabulary.  Most  critics,  however,  will 
hardly  concur  with  Warton  in  saying  that  "he  is  the 
first  of  our    writers,  whose    style   is   clothed  with   that 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  117 

perspicuity,  in  which  English  phraseology  appears  at 
this  day  to  an  English  reader."  ^ 

The  work  of  Pecock,  "  The  Repression  of  over  much 
blaming  of  the  clergy,"  was  written  about  1450  ;  and  in- 
tended as  a  defence  of  the  church  against  the  Wycliffites. 
It  is  said  by  Marsh  to  be  "  if  not  the  first,  yet  certainly 
the  ablest  specimen  of  philosophical  argumentation  which 
had  yet  appeared  in  the  English  tongue."  The  style  and 
the  vocabulary  are  so  much  like  the  writings  of  Wyc- 
liffe  in  the  former  century,  and  like  Hooker  a  century 
and  a  half  later,  as  to  be  proof  of  the  existence  of  a 
distinctive  theological  dialect  in  the  English  language. 
Fortescue  used  the  language  to  set  forth  the  grounds 
of  law  and  civil  government  so  as  to  give  proof 
of  much  legal  knowledge,  a  clear  head,  and  a  sound 
mind. 

Two  other  works  are  deserving  of  mention  in  their 
relation  to  the  growth  of  the  language.  One  of  these  is 
the  "  Morte  Arthur,"  a  translation  from  various  French 
sources  of  the  romance  of  Arthur,  by  Sir  Thomas  Ma- 
lory. Taken  all  in  all,  his  prose  is  the  best  English  of 
the  century.  He  shows  great  mastery  of  expression, 
a  good  deal  of  animation,  and,  in  many  passages,  an  easy 
flowing  style,  sometimes  rising  to  beauty  and  elegance. 
His  language  is  conformed  to  the  Saxon  idiom,  and  in  its 
vocabulary  is  more  purely  Saxon  than  most  writers  of 
the  time,  and  he  seems  to  have  understood  better  than 
most  the  power  and  beauty  of  choice  words. 

The  other  work  to  which  we  have  referred  is  a  col- 
lection of  letters,  almost  the  first,  if  not  really  the  first 
specimen  of  the  kind  in  modern  literature.-     They  were 

1  ii.  p.  3G2.     See  also  ii.  369. 

2  Hippisley's  Early  English  Literature,  p.  237. 


118  ELEMENTS   OF   THE 

written  in  an  easy  idiomatic  style,  on  matters  of  common 
life,  by  persons  of  some  cultivation,  and  of  courj<e  without 
any  thought  of  the  pres:?.  In  regard  to  orthography 
they  are  of  little  value;  their  merit  lies  in  the  easy  struc- 
ture of  tlie  sentence,  and  in  the  naturalness  and  truthful- 
ness of  the  style  to  the  matter  in  hand.  In  these 
respects  these  letters  have  no  rival  in  their  time,  and 
would  lead  to  the  suspicion  that  they  belong  to  the  seven- 
teenth rather  than  to  the  clo?e  of  the  fifteenth  century. 

Thus  in  prose,  as  well  as  in  verse,  a  pure  English 
style  was  occasionally  showing  itself,  and  short  jsassages 
occurring  that  are  in  the  spirit  of  a  later  day,  though 
many  years  were  yet  to  elapse  before  all  the  coarseness 
and  the  imperfections  incident  to  the  origin  and  rapid 
growth  of  the  language  were  to  be  put  away. 

It  was  reserved  for  William  Caxton,  the  great  Eng- 
lish printer,  to  hold  the  first  place  in  this  century,  for 
service  to  the  English  language  and  literature,  by  the 
great  number  of  popular  works,  translations  and  originals, 
which  he  issued  from  his  press.  His  efforts  Avere  con- 
fined mainly  to  the  last  quarter  of  the  century,  but  the 
amount  of  labor  he  accomplished  in  translating,  revising 
older  English  works,  and  superintending  the  press  was 
very  remarkable.  The  earliest  work  known  to  have 
been  printed  in  England,  a  moral  treatise  entitled  "  The 
Game  of  Chess,"  translated  by  Caxton,  from  the  French, 
appeared  in  1474.  The  most  of  his  publications  were 
in  accordance  with  the  spirit  of  the  time,  works  on  de- 
votion and  romance,  with  a  few  translations  from  the 
classics.  He  also  gave  to  the  world  two  editions  of  the 
"  Canterbury  Tales,"  —  the  second  in  order  to  do  better 
justice  to  the  author  ;  also  other  works  of  Chaucer,  and 
Gower's   "  Confessio   Amantis."      He  was  aided  in  his 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  119 

labors  by  the  patronage  and  assistance  of  the  Earls  of 
Worcester  and  Rivers,  who  were  possessed  of  much  true 
literary  taste. 

The  changes  which  the  language  was  passing  through 
were  well  indicated  by  Caxton's  preface  to  the  "  Poly- 
chronicon  of  Higden,"  translated  by  John  de  Trevisa,  in 
the  latter  part  of  the  fourteenth  century,  and  printed 
in  1482.  "  I,  William  Caxton,  a  simple  person,  have 
endeavored  me  to  write  first  over  all  the  said  book  of 
Polychronicon,  and  somewhat  have  changed  the  rude  and 
old  English,  that  is,  to  wit,  certain  words  which  in  these 
days  be  neither  used  ne  understood." 

Caxton's  own  style  is  not  free  from  Gallicisms,  and 
he  introduced  many  romance  words,  perhaps  more  than 
was  for  the  best  interests  of  the  language,  yet  his  labors 
were  on  the  whole  of  great  value  to  fix  and  settle  our 
English  diction. 

"  In  following  the  line  of  our  writers,"  says  Hallam,^ 
"  both  in  verse  and  prose,  we  find  the  old  obsolete  Eng- 
lish to  have  gone  out  of  use  about  the  accession  of 
Edward  the  Fourth  (1461).  Lydgate  and  Bishop 
Pecock,  especially  the  latter,  are  not  easily  understood  by 
a  reader  not  habituated  to  their  language :  he  requires 
a  glossary,  or  must  help  himself  out  by  conjecture.  In 
the  '  Paston  Letters,'  on  the  contrary,  in  Harding,  the 
metrical  chronicler,  or  in  Sir  John  Fortescue's  discourse 
on  the  difference  between  an  absolute  and  a  limited 
monarchy,  he  finds  scarce  any  difficulty ;  antiquated 
words  and  forms  of  expression  frequently  occur  ;  but  he 
is  hardly  sensible  that  he  reads  these  books  much  less 
fluently  than  those  of  modern  times.  These  works  were 
written  about  1470. 

1  Introduction  to  Literature  of  Europe. 


120  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

"  But  in  Sir  Tiiomas  More's  '  History  of  Edward  the 
Fifth,'  written  about  1509,  and  in  the  beautiful  ballad  of 
the  'Nut-brown  Maid,'  which  we  cannot  place  very  far 
from  the  year  1500,  there  is  not  only  a  diminution  of 
obsolete  phraseology,  but  a  certain  modern  turn  and 
structure,  both  in  the  verse  and  prose,  which  denotes  the 
commencement  of  a  new  era,  and  the  establishment  of 
new  rules  of  taste  in  polite  literature.  Every  one  will 
understand  that  a  broad  line  cannot  be  traced  for  the 
beginning  of  this  change." 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  121 


CHAPTER  XL 

THE   EXGLISH   LANGUAGE   IN   THE   SIXTEENTH   CENTURY. 

Causes  contributing  to  the  New  Era  —  The  Period  of  the  Refor- 
mation analogous  to  the  Age  of  Edward  III.  —  Lord  Berners' 
Froissart  —  The  Life  of  Edward  V.  and  of  Richard  III.,  by  Sir 
Thomas  More  —  Tyndale's  Version  of  the  New  Testament — 
Based  on  that  of  Wycliffe  —  The  Reformers,  Cranmer,  Latimer, 
and  Ridley  —  Their  Language  —  Sir  John  Cheke  and  Roger 
Ascham  —  Language  of  most  Theological  Writers  —  Foreign 
Importation  overdone  —  Reaction  —  Vindex  Anglicus  —  Real 
Value  of  the  Additions  from  Foreign  Sources  —  Words  of 
Latin  Derivation  direct  from  the  Classics  —  Formation  of 
Words  from  Latin  Sources  —  Scientific  and  Technical  Terms 
—  Farther  Reaction  —  Union  of  the  Latin  and  Saxon  Ele- 
ments —  Study  of  Words. 

The  new  era,  to  which  Hallam  refers  in  the  passage 
cited  at  the  close  of  the  last  chapter,  was  due  to  a  va- 
riety of  causes,  the  most  important  of  which  we  have 
already  noticed,  —  the  art  of  printing.  In  consequence 
of  this  should  be  named  the  revival  of  classical  studies 
and  an  improved  taste  in  literature.  Other  causes  were 
the  new  spirit  of  enterprise,  leading  to  voyages  of  dis- 
covery, to  improvements  in  the  mechanic  arts,  and  more 
than  all  others,  and  in  part  as  the  result  of  the  awaken- 
ed mind,  the  reformation.  All  these  causes  led  to 
thought  and  inquiry,  and  to  the  more  vigorous  and  the 
more  uniform  use  of  language.  The  effect  was  not  to 
polish  and  refine,  save  in  a  few  select  minds  who  were 


122  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

not  overborne  by  these  influences,  but  were  able  to 
master  them,  as  Moi'e  and  Ascham,  and  the  great 
dramatists  near  (he  close  of  this  century  :  it  was  rather 
to  add  to  its  massive  strength,  to  enlarge  its  vocabulary, 
to  develop  its  rude  capabilities  in  every  depailment  of 
thought  and  effort.  The  period  of  the  reformation 
was  in  many  respects  analogous  to  the  age  of  Edward 
III.  Both  were  seasons  of  the  greatest  intellectual 
activity,  of  the  most  thorough  and  exhaustive  discussions 
on  questions  of  law  and  polity,  civil  and  religious,  ac- 
cording to  the  means  possessed.  In  both  was  there  the 
development  of  a  most  intense  nationality,  of  great  sig- 
nificance to  the  growth  of  a  national  literature.  All 
these  various  influences  were  faithfully  represented  in 
the  language.  It  was  still  in  the  hearty  vigor  of  youth, 
ready  as  at  no  other  time  for  the  impressions  that  were 
now  to  be  made  on  it,  and  to  constitute  it  one  of  the  most 
effective  and  complete  languages  of  modern  times. 

The  most  important  work  in  its  influence  upon  the 
language  of  the  early  part  of  the  sixteenth  century  was 
the  translation  of  "  Froissart  "  by  Lord  Berners,  pub- 
lished in  1523  and  1524.  Its  English  is  as  racy  and 
idiomatic  as  the  French  original,  and  the  popularity 
of  the  work  in  its  time  made  it  of  great  value  to 
our  English  speech.  The  translation  is  so  well  ex- 
ecuted that  Marsh  has  said  that  with  the  exception  of 
now  and  then  a  phrase  it  would  be  difficult  to  find  a 
single  passage  that  gives  evidence  of  having  been  first 
composed  in  another  tongue.^ 

The  next  work  that  shows  true  progress  in  the 
development  of  the  language  is  the  life  of  Edward  V. 
and  a  portion  of  that  of  Richard  III.,  by  Sir  Thomas 
1  Second  Series,  p.  498. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  123 

More,  first  published  in  1543.  More  was  thoroughly 
educated,  and  at  home  in  the  classics  ;  and  he  brought  his 
fine  taste  to  the  culture  of  his  native  tongue.  lie  was 
interested  to  do  this  that  he  might  use  it  with  the  more  ef- 
fect in  religious  controversy,  and  certainly  he  acquired  no 
mean  ability  in  this  direction.  In  these  works  his  style 
is  free  from  the  bitterness  that  marks  his  other  writings, 
and  has  been  justly  esteemed  a  specimen  of  good  prose, 
the  best  the  language  had  as  yet  produced,  and  of  value 
to  show  what  it  was  then  capable  of  in  the  hands  of 
a  master. 

On  the  other  hand,  More's  great  rival  in  theological 
dispute,  Tyndale,  by  his  English  version  of  the  New 
Testament,  first  published  in  1526,  is  said  to  have  ex- 
erted greater  influence  upon  English  philology  than  any 
other  native  author  between  the  ages  of  Chaucer  and 
Shakspeare.  It  was  needed  at  the  time,  and  at  once 
went  into  general  circulation.  It  was  a  farther  and 
more  careful  apphcation  of  the  religious  dialect  develop- 
ed by  WyclifFe,  and  became  the  basis  of  the  later  revised 
edition  in  current  use  at  the  present  day.  Its  differences 
from  WyclifFe  are  such  as  would  naturally  arise  from  the 
better  knowledge  and  taste  of  the  later  period,  not  a 
difference  in  substance  or  essential  character,  but  re- 
taining the  excellencies  of  the  earlier  version  with  such 
improvements  as  his  better  opportunities  enabled  him  to 
make. 

For  many  interesting  particulars  in  regai-d  to  these 
early  versions  of  the  Scriptures,  the  reader  is  referred  to 
Marsh's  Lectures,  First  Series,  twenty-eighth  lecture. 

Some  of  the  reformers  are  worthy  of  notice  for  their 
valuable  services  to  the  English  language.  Cranmer 
ranks  as  the  greatest  writer  among  them,  for  the  full  and 


124  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

even  flow  of  his  words  and  tlioiights.  Latimer  and  Rid- 
ley were  celebrated  for  their  oratory.  Their  language 
was  not  that  of  the  schools,  but  of  the  people.  Latimer 
had  great  popular  tact,  and  knew  how  by  popular  illus- 
trations from  scenes  and  experiences  of  common  life  to 
interest  his  hearers  and  enforce  the  truth.  This  fact 
makes  his  discourses  valuable  memorials  of  the  i)opular 
diction  of  the  time,  and  were  of  great  value  to  the  lan- 
guage, from  thus  making  it  the  means  of  expressing  in  a 
free  and  easy  style  thoughts  that  had  hitherto  been  re- 
served to  a  more  learned  diction.  His  more  impassioned 
utterances,  which  were  of  course  more  in  keeping  with 
the  inward  spirit  of  the  language,  are  remarkably  like 
the  phraseology  that  would  be  employed  at  the  present 
day. 

A  few  distinguished  scholars,  as  Sir  John  Cheke  and 
Roger  Ascham,  wrote  good  English,  though  showing 
plainly  the  influence  of  their  classical  studies.  In  the 
former  especially  is  found  what  Marsh  calls  the  legit- 
imate and  proper  influence  of  classical  learning,  —  "  not 
the  crowding  of  our  diction  with  Latin  words  and 
idioms,  not  an  affluence  of  quotation  or  of  reminiscence 
of  ancient  history  and  fable,  but  grammatical  accuracy 
in  syntax  and  inflection,  strict  attention  to  the  proper  use 
of  woi'ds  singly  considered,  and  idiomatic  purity  in  the 
construction  of  phrases  and  the  arrangement  of  periods." 
Cheke,  with  all  his  learning,  would  use  in  his  English 
only  such  words  as  had  been  fully  established  by  long 
usage.  Ascham  was  less  strict,  yet  a  true  lover  of  good 
speech. 

But  the  larger  part  of  the  theologians  and  scholars 
were  burdened  by  the  material  thrown  on  them  in  con- 
sequence  of  the  great  influx  of  Latin  words  from  the 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  125 

numerous  translations  of  the  classics,  in  which  a  great 
number  of  such  words  were  introduced,  from  the  de- 
ficiency of  the  existing  English,  and  quite  naturally 
from  the  love  of  classical  literature,  and  a  prefer- 
ence for  words  which  had  become  familiar  and  al- 
most one  with  the  ideas  they  wished  to  express  in 
English.  Some  of  the  reformers  were  foreigners,  who 
generally  wrote  in  Latin,  and  when  they  attempted 
to  write  in  Enghsh,  which  could  never  be  as  much  at 
their  command,  they  of  course  retained  as  many  Latin 
words  as  possible.  During  this  century,  and  till  the 
middle  of  the  next,  this  influx  of  Latin  words  and  idioms 
continued,  notwithstanding  the  earnest  remonstrances  of 
a  few  men  like  Ascham  and  Wilson,  —  the  latter  one  of 
the  earliest  teachers  of  rhetoric,  —  and  others  less  known 
to  fame.  The  work  of  foreign  importation  was  decidedly 
overdone,  and  many  good  Saxon  terms  were  crowded 
out,  and  many  more  words  of  Latin  origin  were  intro- 
duced than  were  destined  to  retain  a  place  in  the  lan- 
guage. Some  of  the  sermons  of  the  time  seem  to  have 
had  a  popularity  much  in  proportion  to  the  amount 
of  quotation  from  Greek  and  Latin  authors,  whether 
Christian  or  Pagan,  and  the  words  or  phrases  derived 
from  foreign  sources,  which  the  common  people  could 
not  have  understood.  Of  forty-nine  words  cited  by  a 
.curious  writer  in  a  paper  called  "  Vindex  Anglicus,"  first 
printed  in  1644,  in  illustration  of  the  abuse  to  which  this 
foreign  importation  was  carried,  only  two  words,  contrast 
and   mephiticlc,  have  retained   their   place.-^     One  need 

1  The  entire  list  is  as  follows:  adpugne,  algale,  adstupiate,  doffe, 
defust,  depex,  brochity,  bulbitate,  cxtorque,  ebriolate,  caprious,  con- 
trast, cotillate,  fraxate,  froycc,  imporcate,  incenabe,  incasse,  gingreate, 
glabietall,  halitate,  ligurition,  lurcate,  kemand,  mephitick,  mirmiuodi- 


126  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

read  but  a  few  pages  at  the  most  in  a  larger  part  of  the 
writings  given  to  the  world  by  the  learned  men  from  the 
middle  of  the  sixteenth  to  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth 
century,  to  meet  words  from  Latin  roots  which  never  ob- 
tained any  permanent  footing  in  the  language. 

Yet  much  of  the  copiousne.-^s  of  our  language  is  due  to 
the  words  then  brought  in  from  classic  sources,  and  there 
was  much  good  sense  in  the  remarks  of  the  writer  just 
cited  for  all  his  dislike  of  the  "  thousand  unnatural 
phrases  "  that  caused  a  loathing  in  his  "  curious  and  ju- 
dicious eye."  "  I  seek  not  to  discredit  their  worthy  and 
immortal  labors,  who  with  unmatehable  industry  have 
fetched  hither  the  best  inhabitants  of  other  climates  and 
made  them  denizens  in  our  colonies :  these  who  with 
a  skilful  felicity  have  bought,  brought,  or  borrowed 
the  richest  ornaments  of  other  lanjruaKes,  to  make  ours 
abound  with  plenty  and  variety ;  but  those  I  disclaim 
who,  when  the  work  is  excellently  performed  already, 
must  still  be  fingering  ;  and  when  the  quintessence  and 
life  of  other  tongues  are  ours  already,  must  now  traffic 
for  the  dregs,  to  the  end  they  may  be  said  to  have  done 
somewhat."  "  Our  language  is  copious  enough  already, 
"we  need  to  traffic  no  more  to  enrich  it ;  at  least  not  so 
oft,  for  yet  I  will  not  deny  but  some  pearl  or  other  may 
be  left  behind  uncheapened  of  other  factors,  which  is 
worth  the  buying,  yet  would  I  have  it  naturalized  here 
with  judgment  and  authority."  ^ 

zed,  obsalutate,  orbation,  nisious,  naustible,  plumative,  prodigity, 
puellation,  raption,  rerest,  sumatize,  sudate,  solestick,  scracone,  sub- 
grund,  tridiculate,  tristful,  wadshaw,  xautical,  yexate,  vilulate,  un- 
dosous,  vainbrash,  zoografe. 

"  I  am  deceived  if  they  -will  not  move  both  your  anger  and  laugh- 
ter." 

1  JIarleian  Miscellamj,  vol.  v.  pp.  432,  433. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  127 

Up  to  about  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century, 
most  of  the  words  of  Latin  derivation  that  came  into  the 
language  came  in  through  the  French,  much  reduced 
from  their  original  form  ;  and  when,  as  in  some  instances, 
by  scholars  or  religious  teachers,  imported  directly  from 
the  Latin,  they  were  constructed  on  the  model  of  those 
introduced  through  the  French.  In  later  times,  as  the 
words  from  the  French  or  the  Latin  thus  changed  have 
been  recognized,  there  has  been  a  constant  tendency,  so 
far  as  may  be  consistent  with  established  English  forms, 
to  restore  the  original  Latin  orthography,  so  as  to  keep 
trace  of  the  original  roots. 

After  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century,  words 
were  taken  directly  from  the  Latin,  and  this  practice  has 
continued  in  some  measure  to  the  present  time  ;  while 
words  from  the  French  have  been  introduced  from  French 
literature,  the  same  as  from  any  other  when  needed. 
The  most  frequent  occasion  has  been  to  express  some 
shade  of  thought  first  developed  in  that  language. 

A  large  part  of  the  words  of  the  following  terminations 
were  introduced  during  the  fifteenth,  the  sixteenth,  and 
the  first  half  of  the  seventeenth  centuries :  substantives 
ending  in  tion  and  sion  ;  those  in  ity^  in  ance,  ence,  ancy, 
ency ;  adjectives  in  ant  and  ent ;  nouns  in  tor,  tory,  and 
ure ;  adjectives  in  ary,  ory,  ic,  ical,  ive,  He,  and  iUe, 
able  ;  verbs  in  ate,  act,  ect,  ict,  and^. 

"  Latin,  either  in  its  original  state,  or  as  transformed 
into  French,  is  the  only  foreign  element  with  which 
the  Gothic  basis  of  our  language  has  combined  to  any 
great  extent.  In  modern  times,  it  is  true,  a  vast  number 
of  scientific  and  technical  terms  have  been  fabricated 
from  the  Greek;  and  this  is  the  only  manufacture  of 
additions  to  our  vocabulary  upon  a  considerable  scale, 


128  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

that  still  goes  on.  But  such  words  do  not  belong  to  the 
flesh  and  blood  of  tlie  language  at  all ;  they  may  be 
styled  its  non-natural  part,  or  an  artificial  appendage  to 
it ;  they  stand  in  the  same  relation  to  its  proper  sub- 
stance in  which  the  tools  that  a  man  works  with  stand  to 
his  living  person."  ^ 

The  excessive  importation  of  Latin  words  was  soon 
followed  by  the  reaction  of  the  native  good  sense  of 
the  English  mind.  Reasons  of  a  religious  and  political 
character  had  their  influence.  The  overthrow  of  the 
Commonwealth,  and  the  restoration  of  the  royal  family, 
brought  in  an  entire  new  set  of  influences,  antagonistic 
at  once  to  the  religious  and  political  ideas  that  had  pre- 
vailed as  the  result  of  the  learned  discussions  of  the  pre- 
ceding century,  and  to  the  language  in  which  they  Avere 
expressed.  A  century  later  the  influence  of  Gibbon  and 
Johnson  tended  to  revive  the  use  of  a  more  distinctively 
Latin  diction,  yet  never  to  the  extent  to  which  it  prevail- 
ed during  the  reigns  of  James  and  the  first  Charles. 
This  in  turn  gave  way  to  a  purer  Saxon  idiom,  —  the  re- 
sult of  proper  English  studies.  For  the  last  fifty  years, 
both  elements  in  the  language  have  come  to  be  at  the 
command  of  our  authors,  so  as  to  suit  the  character  of 
the  themes  discussed ;  and  neither  is  again  likely  to  be 
so  far  in  the  ascendant  as  to  characterize  a  period,  or  a 
class  of  authors.  Both  elements  are  thoroughly  incorpo- 
rated into  our  English  speech,  and  are  necessary  to  the 
full  and  free  expression  of  English  thought ;  and  the  best 
writer  or  speaker  is  he  who  knows  how  to  use  both  in 
their  vital  union  with  the  greatest  effect. 

Some  qualities  of  style  depend  on  one  of  these  ele- 
ments, and  some  rather  upon  the  other ;  the  same  is 
1  See  Craik's  Outlines,  pp.  109,  110. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  129 

true  of  different  subjects.  Vivacity,  energy,  and  force 
of  expression  require  rather  the  Saxon  elements ;  while 
elegance  and  the  more  studied  ornaments  call  into  play 
the  Latin.  Still,  in  the  hands  of  a  master  like  Jeremy 
Taylor,  or  "Washington  Irving,  it  is  not  easy  to  run  such 
distinctions  with  much  accuracy.  Some  of  the  most  rhe- 
torical passages  in  the  eloquent  discourses  of  Jeremy 
Taylor,  abound  in  Saxon  words.  The  distinction  in  re- 
gard to  themes  is  more  easily  drawn.  The  Saxon  ele- 
ments are  needed  for  the  emotions,  and  the  Latin  for  the 
intellect. 

It  is  obvious,  therefore,  that  a  correct  understanding 
of  the  language,  so  as  to  use  it  with  the  greatest  effect, 
is  only  possible  as  the  result  of  a  careful  study  of  both. 
Dean  Trench  ^  and  Max  MuUer  have  done  a  most 
valuable  service  to  our  literature  in  calling  attention 
to  etymological  study.  Certain  it  is  that  the  writer  or 
speaker  who  uses  words  merely  as  labels  to  his  thoughts, 
can  never  use  them  with  power.  Another  writer  will 
seem  to  charge  his  words  to  the  full  with  content,  to  give 
them  solidity  and  weight.  Every  word  stands  for  an 
idea,  and  when  duly  marshalled  and  disciplined,  their 
movement  is  like  that  of  armed  battalions.  This  study 
is  of  far  more  account  as  applied  to  the  Latin  portion 
of  the  language  than  to  the  Saxon.  The  Saxon  is  more 
native,  retains  still  something  of  its  virgin  freshness  and 
power.  Its  metaphorical  and  figurative  language  has 
not  lost  its  imaginative  character ;  it  still  appeals  to  the 
heart  and  affections,  and  comparatively  little  effort  is 
required  to  revive  it  when  impaired.  Most  of  our  words 
of  Latin  derivation  were  brought  in  for  the  intellect,  not 
for  the  heart,  —  to  convey  some  one  phase  or  side  of  a 
1  See  Sttidy  of  Words,  and  other  works. 


130  ELEMENTS   OF   THE 

truth,  ami  thus  fail  of  the  suggestiveness  and  richness 
of  Saxon  words.  The  author  who  uses  them  habitually, 
without  any  deeper  reference,  erelong  becomes  enfeebled, 
his  emotional  nature  dried  up  in  its  fountain-heads. 

But  more  than  the  loss  of  intellectual  power,  there  is 
a  loss  on  the  moral  side  also.  Many  words  are  store- 
houses of  moral  ideas,  if  we  have  but  the  key  to  unlock 
them,  —  and  are  capable  of  elevating  our  habits  of 
thought  and  observation  to  higher  levels.  The  word 
constitution,  for  instance,  is  not  a  parchment,  or  a 
paper  ordinance  simply;  in  its  original  sense,  it  carries 
our  thoughts  back  to  that  which  is  abiding  and  necessary 
to  the  very  conception  of  a  state.  The  English  word 
wrong,  derived  from  the  verb  wring,  reveals  its  nature 
as  something  ivrung  from  a  man  contrary  to  his  interests 
and  rights ;  and  when  pronounced  with  a  full  sense  of  its 
import,  and  a  full  hearty  articulation  of  its  consonants, 
attains  its  full  force.  It  is  worthy  of  note  that  the 
French  tort  from  the  Latin  torqueo,  has  a  similar  sense, 
and  a  similar  moral  lesson.  So  again  the  word  false, 
from  the  Latin  fallo,  reveals  the  deception  that  has  been 
jjractised  on  the  honest  mind,  —  the  betrayal  and  abuse 
of  man's  moral  nature. 

Words  are  of  no  value,  save  as  expressive  of  thought 
Other  things  being  equal,  the  man  who  uses  the  fewest 
words  for  his  ideas  will  be  sure  of  a  hearing  in  the  end. 
A  score  of  authors  may  write  on  the  same  theme,  but  he 
only  will  obtain  an  abiding  place  in  literature  who  has 
most  fully  and  perfectly  expressed  his  thoughts.  The 
importance,  therefore,  of  the  study  of  words  on  the  part 
of  the  author,  or  indeed,  of  any  man  who  hopes  to  influ- 
ence by  his  language  the  conduct  or  character  of  his  fel- 
low-men, or  to  secure  himself  an  honorable  place  in  their 
remembrance,  can  hardly  be  over-estimated. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  131 


CHAPTER  XII. 

THE  SIXTEENTH  CENTURY  CONCLUDED. — ITALIAN  LIT- 
ERATURE.—  THE  DRAMA. —  SPENSER.  —  THE  SEVEN- 
TEENTH  CENTURY. 

Italian  Literature  in  the  Age  of  Edward  III.,  of  Henry  VIII.  — 
Nature  of  its  Influence  —  Blank  Verse  —  Pastoral  Poetry  — 
Minor  Poets  of  the  Elizabethan  Era  —  Dramatic  Literature 
—  Aid  to  the  Saxon  portion  of  the  Language  —  Dramatic 
Writers  —  Scholars  —  Vocabulary  of  Shakspeare  as  Compared 
with  Milton  —  The  Vocabulary  of  Original  Authors  —  Shak- 
speare in  this  respect  —  Shakspeare's  Words  the  fit  woi'ds  — 
Early  Dramatists  —  Spenser — Peculiarity  of  his  Poetry,  Lan- 
guage —  Minor  Poets  of  the  Age :  AYarner,  Joseph  Hall, 
Chapman,  Daniel,  Donne,  Quarles,  Herbert  —  Standard  Ver- 
sion of  the  Scriptures  —  Its  Dialect  — Influence  —  English 
Liturgy  —  Writers  of  the  EngUsh  Church — Style  —  Wants 
of  the  Language — Milton's  Influence  on  the  Language  — 
Lord  Bacon  —  Milton's  Minor  Poems  and  Prose. 

Influence  of  Italian  Literature. 

The  influence  of  Italian  literature,  which  had  fur- 
nished subject-matter  for  some  of  the  elder  poets,  as 
Chaucer  and  Gower,  was  again  felt  upon  some  of  the 
moi-e  select  minds  in  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII.,  as  TVyatt 
and  Surrey.  Its  influence,  however,  was  confined  rather 
to  supplying  models  of  composition,  and  improving  the 
literary  taste  of  our  authors,  than  to  the  introduction  of 
new  idioms  or  new  words  into  our  vocabulary,  and  such 

y 


132  ELEMENTS   OF   THE 

continued  to  be  its  influence  for  more  than  two  centuries. 
In  imitation  of  the  Italian  poetj;,  Surrey  first  discarded 
rhyme,  and  employed  blank  verse,  in  the  translation  of 
two  books  of  the  iEneid.  The  attempt  was  not  very 
successful,  but  led  the  way  to  later  successes  on  the  part 
of  Milton  and  others.  Surrey  was  moi'e  successful  in  his 
rhymed  poems,  and  but  for  his  untimely  death,  —  the  vic- 
tim of  tyranny,  at  the  age  of  twenty-seven,  —  would  have 
acquired  a  great  name  in  English  literature.  Both 
Surrey  and  Wyatt  did  much  to  refine  and  polish  the 
language,  and  by  their  choice  of  the  popular  colloquial 
speech  of  their  time,  disseminated  their  influence  over 
a  wide  circle  of  readers. 

It  was  from  Italian  literature  that  our  poets  borrowed 
the  forms  of  pastoral  poetry,  so  popular  in  the  time  of 
Elizabeth,  and  for  some  time  later ;  illustrated  by  such 
writers  as  Sir  Philip  Sidney,  Spenser,  Browne,  the 
Fletchers,  and  others.  The  ideal  world  which  the 
pastoral  poet  created  for  himself  gave  a  free  range  to 
his  invention,  and  was  a  means  of  developing  new 
powers  in  the  language.  It  was  a  happy  artifice  by 
which  the  poet  set  himself  free  from  the  unpoetic  real- 
ities around  him,  and  with  just  enough  of  actual  truth  to 
retain  him  within  the  bounds  of  poetic  probability,  had 
the  freest  opportunity  to  display  his  fancy  and  his  imag- 
ination. If  this  was  not  a  field  for  the  highest  order  of 
excellence,  it  was  a  valuable  discipline  for  other  and 
nobler  labors  on  the  part  of  such  men  as  Spenser  and 
Milton. 

The  minor  poets  of  the  Elizabethan  period  show  the 
influence  of  Italian  models  quite  as  much  in  the  sub- 
stance as  in  the  form  of  their  poems.  There  is  a  warmth 
of  coloring,  a  freedom  in  the  expression  of  sensual  pas- 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  133 

sion,  that  belong  rather  to  the  warm  blood  of  the  South, 
than  to  the  soberer  English,  and  to  the  purities  of  home 
and  the  domestic  affections.  In  this  direction  the  lan- 
guage may  have  gained  in  copiousness  and  facility,  but 
at  the  expense  of  moral  sentiment,  and  so  lost  in  true 
power.  There  were,  however,  at  work  in  other  direc- 
tions influences  that  more  than  made  up  for  any  defi- 
ciency on  this  side  ;  influences  that  have  had  great  weight 
on  the  course  of  English  poetry  ;  and  as  the  result,  we 
have  the  high  conceptions  of  the  moral  duties  and  influ- 
ence of  the  poet  that  have  been  set  forth  by  Milton  and 
Wordsworth. 

Dramatic  Literature. 

The  most  important  means  of  discipline  which  the  lan- 
guage enjoyed  in  the  sixteenth  century  was,  doubtless, 
through  the  drama.  If  the  learning  and  theology  and 
political  discussions  of  the  time  were  of  eminent  service 
in  developing  the  Latin  elements  of  the  language  and 
adding  to  its  copiousness,  like  noble  service  was  rendered 
on  the  other  hand  to  the  Saxon  portion  by  the  drama. 
This  was  eminently  for  the  people,  and  in  the  language 
of  the  people.  Those  who  wrote  were  often  learned 
men,  —  the  earlier  writers  nearly  all  such ;  and  they 
were  thus  prepared  to  select  with  taste  and  judgment 
the  fittest  words  from  the  popular  dialect  for  the  expres- 
sion of  their  thoughts.  The  progress  of  the  drama, 
—  from  the  first  rude  exhibitions  of  scriptural  scenes, 
the  so-called  Mysteries,  and  the  Moral  Plays  which  were 
devised  for  the  instruction  of  the  people  with  a  mixture 
of  comic  and  farcical  elements  in  order  to  retain  their 
attention   and  amuse,  —  step  by  step,  as  the  true  office 


134  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

of  tlie  drama  became  more  and  more  revealed  and  the 
means  jjrovided  to  realize  it,  till  it  was  taken  up  by 
Shakspeare  and  his  contemporary  dramatists,  was  em- 
inently favorable  to  the  growth  of  choice  and  forcible 
language.  The  great  variety  of  the  characters  and 
scenes  gave  it  a  wide  range,  till  the  vocabulary  of 
Shakspeare  became  more  than  double  that  of  any  othei 
writer  in  the  English  language.  Craik  estimates  it  at 
21,000  words,  without  counting  the  inflectional  forms  as 
distinct  words,  while  that  of  Milton  was  but  7000. 

Every  original  author  naturally  forms  a  vocabulary 
in  many  respects  his  own,  —  for  the  utterance  of  his 
own  thought  and  feeling  on  all  subjects,  however  vari- 
ous. "  But  Shakspeare  has  invented  twenty  styles. 
He  has  a  style  for  every  one  of  his  great  characters,  by 
which  that  character  is  distinguished  from  every  other,  as 
much  as  Pope  is  distinguished  in  his  style  from  Dryden, 
or  Milton  from  Spenser.  And  yet  all  the  while  it  is  he 
himself  with  his  own  peculiar  accent  that  we  hear  in 
every  one  of  them.  The  style  or  manner  of  expression  -~- 
that  is  to  say,  the  manner  of  thinking,  of  which  the  ex- 
pression is  always  the  product  —  is  at  once  both  that 
which  belongs  to  the  particular  character  and  that  which 
is  equally  natural  to  the  poet,  the  conceiver  and  creator 
of  the  character."  ^ 

Yet  the  great  number  of  words  Avhich  he  employs  are 
never  used  carelessly :  they  are  always  the  fit  words,  and 
can  rai'ely  be  changed  for  others  as  expressive  in  their 
place.  Very  many  of  them  are  used  but  once  or  twice, 
and  then  because  needed  for  the  character  and  the  situa- 
tion. The  great  mass  of  his  ordinary  diction  is  emphat- 
ically Saxon,  and  used,  too,  with  economy.  If  we  were 
1  Craik,  i.  56i. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  135 

to  strike  out  all  the  words  used  not  more  than  twenty 
times,  there  would  be  a  very  great  reduction  of  his  vo- 
cabulary, perhaps  to  the  amount  of  two  tliirds  of  the 
whole.  His  power  lay  not  simply  in  the  extent  of  his  vo- 
cabulary, needful  as  this  was  to  his  purpose,  but  in  the 
skilful  combination  and  power  of  the  words  he  employed. 
Shakspeare  was  preceded  by  dramatists  and  other 
writers  who  had  been  steadily  developing  the  resources 
of  the  language  in  all  directions.  His  age  was  one  of 
the  greatest  intellectual  activity,  —  of  fresh,  original 
activity,  on  the  most  important  subjects  of  human 
thought  or  endeavor.  The  public  mind  was  stirred  to  its 
lowest  depths  by  profound  moral  and  political  truth. 
And  it  was  the  moral  life  of  man  in  its  complete  cir- 
cle, —  in  its  completed  round  of  award,  as  the  result  of 
necessary  moral  laws  under  the  guidance  of  Divine 
Providence,  that  Shakspeare  aimed  to  set  forth.  It  was 
an  ideal  conception,  the  consummation  of  the  drama ; 
one  adequate  to  call  forth  his  utmost  energies,  and  de- 
manding for  its  full  realization  the  largest  experience,  or 
what  is  the  same  to  the  true  genius,  the  truest  concep- 
tion of  all  possible  human  relations,  and  a  language  com- 
petent to  express  them,  —  and  all  this  Shakspeare  had. 
And  it  is  not  too  much  to  say,  that  English  speech  as 
well  as  literature  owes  more  to  him  than  to  any  other 
man.  Other  dramatists  of  his  time,  as  Marlowe,  Beau- 
mont and  Fletcher,  Ben  Jonson,  all  have  their  excellen- 
ces, —  passages  of  great  power,  but  not  the  even  uni- 
form excellence,  and  by  no  means  the  command  of  lan- 
guage possessed  by  Shakspeare.  Not  unwisely  has  the 
student  been  referred  to  Shakspeare  next  to  the  author- 
ized version  of  the  Scriptures  for  his  best  studies  in  the 
use  of  his  native  tongue. 


136  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

Sliak.spcarc'rf  influence  on  his  native  tongue  was  univer- 
sal like  his  character,  as  valuable  to  its  powers  in  prose 
as  in  verse.  His  prose  was  as  good  as  the  English  litera- 
ture had  yet  known.  Spenser's  influence,  on  the  other  hand, 
was  limited  rather  to  poetry.  He  developed  the  language 
of  sensuous  imagery  to  its  fullest  compass.  His  style  is 
rich,  gorgeous,  all  aglow  with  poetic  splendors.  He  seems 
to  fairly  revel  in  the  profusion  of  beautiful  imagery  that 
crowds  upon  his  fancy  and  imagination.  The  accumu- 
lations of  the  past  from  Chaucer  down,  with  all  the 
manifold  creations  of  his  own  genius,  are  alike  at  his 
command.  He  sometimes  indulges  in  archaic  expres- 
sions, but  they  are  the  material  he  has  borrowed  from 
older  poets ;  be  is  not  archaic  in  his  thought  or  spirit, 
but  fully  up  to  the  time  in  which  he  lived,  "  In  the  mas- 
tery of  the  true  English  of  his  time,"  says  Marsh,^  "  in 
acute  sensibility  of  ear  and  exquisite  skill  in  the  musical 
arrangement  of  words,  he  has  no  superior  in  the  whole 
compass  of  English  literature."  The  same  writer  has 
called  attention  to  his  rare  felicity  in  verbal  combinations, 
his  use  of  adjectives  to  heighten  and  intensify  the  appro- 
priate meaning  of  his  nouns,  and  often  with  reference  to 
their  radical  sense,  thus  evincing  a  study  of  words  rare 
at  that  period. 

The  minor  poets  of  the  time  were  so  far  eclipsed  by 
Spenser  and  Shakspeare  as  to  fail  of  their  just  deserts. 
Their  service  to  the  language  was  much  in  the  same 
general  direction  as  that  of  the  great  masters.  They 
wrote  because  they  had  something  to  say,  and  often  said 
it  well.  Craik  says  of  one  of  them, — AVarner,  who  died 
in  1609,  —  that  for  "  fluency,  combined  with  precision,  and 
economy  of  diction,"  he  is  probably  unrivalled  among  the 
1  Second  Series,  p.  548. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  137 

writers  of  English  verse.  The  satires  of  Joseph  Hall 
are  still  read  with  interest  for  their  animated  style  and 
sentiment.  Chapman's  translation  of  Homer  is  the  best 
extant,  —  in  tone  and  spirit  more  like  an  original  work 
than  a  translation.  Daniel,  so  much  admired  by  Cole- 
ridge, and  yet  more,  Donne,  illustrated  the  power  of  our 
speech  to  treat  philosophical  and  metaphysical  subjects 
in  verse.  The  successors  of  Donne,  —  Quarles  and  Her- 
bert, —  taxed  it  for  whatever  is  quaint  and  sententious ; 
and,  by  their  popularity,  especially  the  latter,  gave  cur- 
rency to  what  for  want  of  a  better  term  may  be  called 
poetical  conceits  rather  than  good  verse. 

In  order  to  present  together  what  stands  in  logical  con- 
nection, some  portion  of  what  belongs  to  the  next  century 
will  be  noticed  here. 

Our  standard  version  of  the  Scriptures,  though  due  in 
great  measure  to  earlier  versions  and  based  on  that  of  Wyc- 
liffe,  yet  owes  much  to  the  care  of  the  scholars  appointed 
by  King  James.  This  subject  has  been  discussed  so  fully 
and  admirably  by  Marsh  in  his  first  series  of  lectures, 
that  only  a  recognition  of  its  place  as  affecting  the  char- 
acter of  the  language  will  here  be  made.  It  presents 
not  the  dialect  of  any  one  portion  of  the  English  people, 
but  the  carefully  studied  words  of  all  English  dialects, 
chosen  during  a  long  series  of  years,  by  a  succession 
of  earnest,  thoughtful  scholars,  and  at  last  adopted  as 
the  best  in  the  judgment  of  a  large  number  of  able  and 
accomplished  divines.  Its  general  use  since,  wherever 
English  is  spoken,  has  made  it  a  power,  conservative 
of  the  best  and  purest  elements  of  our  native  speech. 
Next  to  this  should  be  reckoned  the  liturgy  of  the^ 
English  church  used  so  widely  in  the  British  realms,  as 
also  for  substance  in  this  country.     Although  nominally 


138  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

adopted  in  the  reign  of  Edward  VI.,  it  had  become 
fully  established  by  tlie  opening  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury. Its  diction  is  strongly  marked  by  its  Anglo-Saxon 
character,  and  lias  had  no  little  influence  upon  the  style 
and  methods  of  composition  of  the  English  clergy.  Dur- 
ing the  century  under  review,  their  style  in  sermons  and 
theological  writing  was  manifestly  superior  to  that  of  the 
dissenters ;  more  free,  and  easy,  and  idiomatic.  Some  of 
the  finest  of  the  Puritan  writers  lost  much  of  their  power 
from  their  heavy,  cumbrous  speech.  There  are  some 
notable  exceptions.  But  none  of  them  can  be  compared 
with  Jeremy  Taylor,  or  Barrow.  And  at  the  close  of  the 
preceding  century,  Hooker  had  given  an  example  of 
philosophical  precision  in  the  use  of  language,  and  some 
passages  of  great  rhetorical  beauty.  The  nearest  rivals 
of  these  great  masters  of  prose  which  the  century  pro- 
duced on  the  other  side  were  Milton  and  Bunyan  ;  the 
first  sometimes  indulging  in  Latinisms  to  excess,  but  also 
remarkable  for  his  rhythmical  flow,  and  full,  well-rounded 
periods  ;  the  other  for  his  admirable  simplicity  and  nat- 
uralness of  style. 

Nothing  was  now  lacking  in  order  to  the  full  compass 
of  the  language  but  its  use  in  the  composition  of  a  great 
epic,  and  in  the  higher  triumphs  of  oratory.  The  last 
was  not  to  be  exhibited  till  the  next  century  by  Lord 
Chatham,  Burke,  and  their  compeers  in  botli  hemi- 
spheres ;  the  first  was  in  reserve  for  Milton.  He  illus- 
trated the  capacity  of  the  language  to  embrace  the  high- 
est themes  of  poetry,  and  established  our  heroic  measure. 
Poetry  like  his  belongs  emphatically  to  what  De  Quin- 
•cey  calls  the  literature  of  power;  —  it  affects  the  thought 
of  men,  elevates,  ennobles,  and  inspires  fitting  language 
for  its  utterance. 


ENGLISH   LANGUAGE.  lo9 

In  the  same  light  is  Lord  Bacon's  influence  to  be 
regarded.  His  works,  so  far  as  they  were  in  English, 
had  an  influence  rather  upon  the  thought  of  his  time 
than  directly  upon  its  expression.  His  essays  are  to 
be  regarded,  as  Marsh  observes,  as  a  "  fair  picture  of 
the  language  used  at  that  time  by  men  of  the  highest 
culture  in  the  conversational  discussion  of  questions  of 
practical  philosophy,  or  what  the  Germans  call  loorld- 
wisdom."  Yet  in  the  impulse  he  gave  to  scientific  in- 
quiry and  to  philosophic  thought,  he  was  not,  by  any 
means,  without  great  influence  upon  the  language. 

Milton's  great  poetical  works  fell  upon  an  evil  time. 
Like  Bacon's,  his  works  were  rather  for  succeeding  ages 
than  for  his  own.  His  thought  was  of  a  character 
that  found  little  appreciation  among  the  returned  cava- 
liers, or  the  crowds  that  waited  on  the  exhibitions  of  the 
comic  dramatists.  His  minor  poems  which  were  most 
thoroughly  finished  specimens  of  verse,  filled  to  the  full 
\vith  rich  poetic  thought  and  imagery,  shared  in  the  fate 
that  political  and  moral  prejudices  excited.  They,  too, 
were  to  find  fit  audience  in  another  more  favorable 
period.  His  prose  was  for  his  own  age,  his  poetry  for 
later  times.  It  was  in  the  latter  that  he  was  most  at 
home,  best  able  to  give  his  thoughts  a  fitting  form. 


140  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

CONCLUDING   I'EniOD. 

The  French  School  —  Period  in  England  —  Dryden  —  His  Po- 
sition and  Merits  —  Hobbes,  his  Style  —  The  Merits  of  the 
French  School  —  The  Prose  of  the  Essayists,  as  a  Model  — 
Bunyan  —  Izaak  "Walton  —  Changes  in  tlie  Language  since 
the  opening  of  the  Eighteenth  Century  —  Defoe  —  Swift  — 
Bolingbroke  —  Jolmson  —  Value  of  Johnson's  Labors  —  His 
Written  Style  —  The  Englisli  Historians  —  The  Style  of 
Macaulay  —  Causes  of  a  more  Idiomatic  Style  of  Late  Years 

—  Influence  of  German  Literature  —  The  Language  in  Great 
Britain  as  Compared  with  its  Use  in  the  United  States  —  Dif- 
ferences —  Cause  —  Ortliography  —  Changes  of  Pronunciation 

—  Influence  of  Political  Discussions,  of  the  Clergy  — Position 
and  Future  Destiny  of  the  Language. 

The  French  School. 

Important  changes  in  the  literary  world  are  never 
sudden.  It  is  convenient  to  mark  them  by  periods,  but 
the  first  beginnings  usually  lie  back  underneath  former 
periods,  and  stretch  over  succeeding  ones.  The  influ- 
ence of  French  literature  upon  the  English  mind  was 
already  marked  in  the  time  of  Charles  I.  The  inter- 
course brought  about  between  the  two  kingdoms  through 
Queen  Henrietta  led  to  a  partial  imitation  of  French 
models.  The  distinguishing  characteristic  of  French 
poetry  as  of  French  art,  as  Craik  justly  remarks,  "  neat- 
ness in  the  dressincr  of  the  thought,"  found  English  imi- 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  141 

tators  in  Waller,  Carew,  Lovelace,  and  Suckling,  —  all 
minor  poets,  such  as  would  most  naturally  become 
imitators.  They  were  the  first  to  exemplify,  as  a  set 
purpose  of  style,  what  may  be  done  by  correctness  of 
expression  and  smoothness  of  flow.  They  all  deserve 
better  of  the  language  than  of  its  poetry,  for  their  attempt 
to  give  it  greater  finish  and  polish.  The  spirit  of  the 
age  was  yet  too  serious  to  allow  of  the  sacrifice  of 
all  thought  to  mere  effect,  to  brilliancy  and  display ; 
though  this  was  manifestly  the  tendency  of  this  kind  of 
writing,  —  to  be  studious  of  point  rather  than  of  truth,  to 
rely  on  artifice  and  skill  rather  than  on  nature  and  true 
poetic  feeling.  Most  of  these  writers,  as  would  be  ex- 
pected, belonged  to  the  Cavalier  party,  but  one  "on  the 
Pui'itan  side  deserves  mention,  George  Wither,  who  was 
known  as  a  writer  for  some  sixty  years.  His  great 
excellence  is  his  genuine  English,  and  his  anticipation, 
so  to  speak,  of  the  forms  and  expressions  of  modern  com- 
position. "  His  unaffected  diction  even  now,  has  scarce- 
ly a  stain  of  age  upon  it."  Some  of  his  songs  and  hymns 
of  the  Church  are  greatly  admired.  The  secret  of  this 
modern  cast  of  his  composition  it  is  not  difficult  to  ex- 
plain. He  was  eminently  true  to  the  English  spirit,  — 
to  the  moral  ideas  whicli  characterize  English  literature 
as  a  Avhole,  from  which  it  occasionally  diverges,  for  a 
time,  to  one  side  or  the  other,  but  sooner  or  later  comes 
back.  He  had  imbibed  the  religious  spirit  of  his  time, 
and  improved  the  means  of  culture  offered  him,  so  as 
to  give  a  fitting  form  to  the  {)oetic  religious  thought 
of  the  day,  and  though  not  a  genius  of  the  higliest 
order,  was  eminently  happy  in  his  age  and  opportu- 
nities. 

Wiiat  is  called  the  French  scliool  of  poetry  is  hardly 
9 


142  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

to  be  attributed  solely  to  French  influence,  though  un- 
doubtedly j)roinoted  by  it,  but  ratlier  to  the  same  cause 
in  botii  languages,  the  study  of"  Roman  classic  poetry,  or 
perhaps  to  the  study  of  the  classics  generally.  It  was 
rather  the  attempt  to  imitate  so  far  as  the  unlike  lan- 
guages would  allow,  classic  models,  to  emulate  the  same 
finisli  and  polish  of  diction.  In  the  French  language, 
from  its  derivation,  the  attempt  was  much  more  success- 
ful than  in  English.  It  was  really  foreign  to  the  genius 
of  the  English,  both  in  respect  of  form  and  of  thought. 
It  Avas  opposed  to  the  true  Christian  spirit  and  the  deeper 
thought  on  all  subjects  which  it  inspires.  It  suited  bet- 
ter the  people  whose  language  and  religion  were  more  in 
the  spirit  of  the  classical  period.  In  England  this  school 
flourished  during  the  decline  of  the  religious  sentiment 
for  a  century  or  more,  and  then  gave  way  to  the  revival 
of  a  purer,  more  English,  as  more  Christian,  feeling  and 
thought. 

Of  this  French  school  Dryden  is  sometimes  called 
the  founder,  but  as  we  have  seen,  it  originated  in  an 
earlier  period.  Though  belonging  to  this  school,  rather 
than  to  that  of  Shakspeare  and  Milton,  he  was  too  great 
a  poet,  and  too  much  of  a  man  to  be  the  disciple  of 
a  schooh  He  exhibits  a  true  native,  hearty  vigor  of 
expression,  a  command  of  good  English  diction,  that 
redeems  him  at  once  from  all  servility  to  models.  He 
deserves  a  high  place  for  his  valuable  services  to  the 
language,  by  his  own  methods  of  using  it  in  both  prose 
and  verse,  and  for  his  valuable  criticism.  He  may  be 
said  to  mark  the  turning  point  between  the  old  heavy, 
cumbrous  diction,  the  prolix  discussions  due,  as  we  have 
suggested,  in  part  to  the  influence  of  the  scholastic  phi- 
losophy, which  characterize  so  much  of  the  prose  liter- 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  143 

ature  of  the  preceding  century  and  stand  now  so  much 
in  the  way  of  the  influence  of  some  of  the  noblest  pro- 
ductions of  the  Enghsh  minds,  and  the  modern  simplicity 
and  directness  of  expression.  There  had  been  some 
specimens  of  good  English  prose  before  him,  but  they 
were  exceptional  instances.  Jeremy  Taylor,  with  all 
his  eloquence  and  mastery  of  the  long  sentence,  is  far 
enough  from  the  vivacity,  directness,  and  energy  of  mod- 
ern thought ;  Milton's  prose,  rich  and  copious  as  it  is,  is 
yet  too  much  loaded  with  Latinisms  to  be  a  model  of  good 
English.  The  best  writer,  the  man  who  has  been  styled 
by  Hallam,  "our  first  uniformly  careful  and  correct 
writer,  was  Hobbes."  In  the  properly  intellectual  qual- 
ities of  style  he  has  no  superior.  Ornament  was  not  in 
his  vein.  In  his  translation  of  Homer  it  is  said  that 
there  are  but  two  positively  poetical  lines  in  the  entire 
work.  Little  of  poetical  coloring  could  then  be  expected 
in  his  prose.  "  This,"  as  Craik  observes,  "  is  his  least 
merit.  No  writer  has  succeeded  in  making  language  a 
more  perfect  exponent  of  thought  that  it  is,  as  employed 
by  Hobbes.  His  style  is  not  poetical  nor  glowing  nor 
eloquent,  because  his  mind  was  not  poetical,  and  the 
subjects  about  which  he  wrote  would  have  rejected  the 
exaggerations  of  imaginative  or  passionate  expression,  if 
he  had  been  capable  of  supplying  such.  But  in  the 
prime  qualities  of  precision  and  perspicuity,  and  also  in 
economy  and  succinctness,  in  force  and  in  terseness,  it  is 
the  very  perfection  of  an  expository  style."  ^  In  these 
qualities,  so  unlike  those  of  former  English  writers,  we 
recognize  the  peculiarities  characteristic  of  modern  French 
prose,  suggested  probably  at  the  first  by  French  models, 
but  carried  to  their  perfection  by  a  mind  that  needed  but 

1  Craik's  History  of  English  Literature,  voL  ii.  p.  109. 


144  ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

a  suggestion  in  order  to  the  successful  prosecution  of  his 
work. 

What  had  been  tlie  exception  before,  found  in  de- 
tached passages  of  particular  writers,  and  in  individual 
writers,  with  Dryden  became  tl)e  rule,  and  with  him  may 
be  said  to  have  begun  our  modern  prose. 

The  influence  of  the  French  school  —  or  rather  classi- 
cal school  of  poetry  —  was  on  the  whole  of  great  value  to 
the  culture  of  the  language,  if  we  can  detach  the  language 
from  the  thought  embodied  in  it.  The  study  of  words  for 
the  sake  of  their  poetical  capabilities  has  ever  been  of 
value  as  a  means  of  securing  a  choice  diction.  This  was 
carried  to  an  excess  by  Pope  and  his  followers,  and 
to  the  serious  damage  of  true  poetic  feeling,  yet  its  in- 
fluence upon  the  language  is  obvious  in  the  prose  style 
of  Pope,  Gray,  and  Cowper,  as  well  as  in  the  essayists 
of  the  eighteenth  century,  more  particularly  Addison  and 
Steele.  The  style  of  these  authors  is  often  commended 
as  a  model  for  young  authors,  and  if  ease  and  simplicity 
of  expression  are  all  that  is  to  be  desired,  the  commen- 
dation is  good  ;  but  if  the  higher  qualities  of  style,  as 
force,  energy,  intensity,  and  vehemence,  —  qualities  de- 
pending quite  as  much  on  the  thought  as  on  the  expres- 
sion, though  uniting  both,  — are  to  be  acquired,  then  these 
authors  should  be  read  but  sparingly.  There  are  others 
far  better  suited  to  develop  in  the  student  a  hearty, 
vigorous,  masculine  style.  They  are  such  as  breathe 
more  of  the  true  English  spirit,  its  practical  sound  sense, 
its  vehement  energy,  as  fired  by  Christian  ideas,  and 
Christian  conceptions  of  life  and  duty. 

During  the  existence  of  this  French  school  there  were 
a  few  wi'iters  who  adhered  with  true  Saxon  fidelity  to 
the  native  idiom.     One  of  the  most  remarkable  of  these 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  145 

was  John  Bunyan.  His  language  was  not  impaired  by 
the  learning  of  the  schools,  by  its  Latinity,  or  its  scholas- 
ticism, nor  by  the  courtly  dialect  of  the  cavaliers,  nor 
by  the  models  of  the  French  school.  "  The  style  of 
Bunyan,"  says  Lord  Macaulay,  "  is  delightful  to  every 
reader,  and  invaluable  as  a  study  to  every  person  who 
wishes  to  obtain  a  wide  command  over  the  English  lan- 
guage. The  vocabulary  is  the  vocabulary  of  the  common 
people.  There  is  not  an  expression,  if  we  except  a  few 
technical  terms  of  theology,  which  would  puzzle  the  rud- 
est peasant.  We  have  observed  several  pages  which  do 
not  contain  a  single  word  of  more  than  two  syllables. 
Yet  no  writer  has  said  more  exactly  what  he  meant  to 
say.  For  magnificence,  for  pathos,  for  vehement  ex- 
hortation, for  subtile  disquisition,  for  every  purpose  of 
the  poet,  the  orator,  and  the  divine,  this  homely  dialect, 
the  dialect  of  plain  working  men,  was  perfectly  suffi- 
cient. There  is  no  book  in  our  literature  on  which  we 
would  so  readily  stake  the  fame  of  the  old  unpolluted 
English  language,  no  book  which  shows  so  well  how  rich 
that  language  is  in  its  own  proper  wealth,  and  how  little 
it  has  been  improved  by  all  that  it  has  borrowed."  ^ 

Next  to  Bunyan,  should  be  ranked  the  good  and 
honest  angler,  —  Izaak  Walton  ;  a  man  in  whom  the 
hearty  love  of  truth  had  its  full  expression,  to  the 
utter  neglect  of  all  pretence  and  affectation  of  style  or 
thought. 

The  Eighteenth  and  Nineteenth   Centuries. 

The  changes  made  in  the  language  since  the  opening 
of  the  eighteenth  century  have  been  such  as  have  re- 

1  Essays,  vol.  ii.  p.  26G.  (Edition  published  by  Sheldon  &  Co.,  New 
York.) 


146  •        ELEMENTS  OF  THE 

suited  from  its  use  by  good  authors,  rather  than  from  the 
admixture  or  asshuilation  of  new  elements.  It  has  shared 
in  the  general  advance  in  science  and  culture  of  those 
who  have  used  it  in  both  hemispheres.  As  the  expres- 
sion of  character,  it  has  varied  as  the  national  and  moral 
character  of  the  people  has  changed. 

In  Great  Britain  the  change  has  been  less  perhaps 
than  in  the  United  States  and  the  British  Colonies.  A 
few  authors  only  need  be  mentioned  as  having  a  special 
influence.  Among  these  are  Defoe,  Swift,  Boling- 
broke,  and  Johnson,  and  perhaps  the  great  English  his- 
torians. 

Defoe  exhibited  the  power  of  the  language  in  a  series 
of  works  belonging  to  what  may  be  termed  the  deline- 
ative  imagination.  Minuteness  of  detail,  truth  to  nature, 
graphic  description,  giving  to  all  an  air  of  reality,  and  a 
purity  of  English  idiom,  were  his  special  characteristics. 
In  his  chosen  field  he  ranked  with  Hobbes  in  that  of 
political  and  moral  philosophy.  Both  were  eminently 
masters  of  English.  In  Defoe's  works  there  is  nothing 
of  his  own  individuality,  —  of  his  personal  character. 
In  this  respect  Swift  is  wholly  unlike  him.  Anything 
that  comes  from  his  pen  bears  the  stamp  of  the  author, 
his  intense  feeling,  passions,  and  prejudices.  No  man 
ever  excelled  him  in  the  language  of  biting  sarcasm,  and 
few  for  the  nervous  energy,  and  the  masculine  force  of  his 
English.  His  keen  glance  pierced  straight  to  the  heart 
of  things,  and  his  language  is  fully  adequate  to  his  per- 
ception, —  sometimes  coarse,  almost  savage  in  its  se- 
verity, and  again  flexible  to  the  gentler  emotions ;  yet 
on  the  whole  remarkable  for  its  clear  masculine  force. 
There  is  nothing  of  the  tameness  and  weak  goodness  to 
be  found  in  some  authors  of  his  age  ;  he  had  no  patience 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  147 

with  littleness  or  meanness  of  any  sort,  but  struck  right 
and  left,  with  a  stern  English  practical  sense,  eminently 
refreshing  to  one  weary  of  the  nice  proprieties  and  the 
classical  euphemisms  of  second  and  third  rate  authors. 

Another  writer,  by  his  moral  and  political  affinities 
left  the  more  free  to  express  his  own  individuality,  and 
thus  to  merit  a  notice  in  this  connection,  was  Lord  Bo- 
lingbroke.  "  His  style,"  observes  Craik,-^  "  was  a  happy 
medium  between  that  of  the  scholar  and  that  of  the  man 
of  society  ;  or  rather  it  was  a  happy  combination  of  the 
best  qualities  of  both,  heightening  the  ease,  freedom, 
fluency,  and  liveliness  of  elegant  conversation  with  many 
of  the  deeper  and  richer  tones  of  the  eloquence  of 
formal  orations  and  of  books.  The  example  he  thus  set 
has  probably  had  a  very  considerable  effect  in  moulding 
the  style  of  popular  writing  among  us  since  his  time." 
The  following  passage  reminds  us  of  the  style  of  Lord 
Macaulay.  It  is  from  a  notice  of  the  two  brothers 
Charles  and  James,  of  the  House  of  Stuart :  — ■ 

"  Tlie  two  brothers,  Charles  and  James,  became  then 
infected  with  popery  to  such  degrees  as  their  different 
characters  admitted  of.  Charles  had  parts  ;  and  his  good 
understanding  served  as  an  antidote  to  repel  the  poison. 
James,  the  simplest  man  of  his  time,  drank  off  the  whole 
chalice.  The  poison  met,  in  his  composition,  with  all  the 
fear,  all  the  credulity,  and  all  the  obstinacy  of  temper 
proper  to  increase  its  virulence,  and  to  strengthen  its 
effect.  The  first  had  always  a  wrong  bias  upon  him. 
....  The  last  drunk  witli  superstitious  and  even  en- 
thusiastic zeal,  ran  headlong  upon  his  own  ruin  whilst  lie 
endeavored  to  precipitate  ours.  His  parliament  and  his 
people  did  all  they  could  do  to  save  themselves  by  win- 
1  Vol.  ii.  p.  248. 


148  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

ning  him.  But  all  was  vain  :  he  had  no  principle  on 
which  they  could  take  hold.  Even  his  good  qualities 
worked  against  them,  and  his  love  of  his  country  went 
halves  with  his  bigotry.  How  he  succeeded  we  have 
heard  from  our  fathers.  The  revolution  of  one  thousand 
six  hundred  and  eighty-eight  saved  the  nation  and  ruined 
the  king."  ^ 

But  to  no  man  of  the  century  was  the  language  so 
much  indebted  as  to  the  great  lexicographer,  Dr.  Samuel 
Johnson.  His  dictionary,  the  result  of  seven  years'  in- 
cessant labor,  with  the  aid  of  five  or  six  copyists,  was 
published  in  1755,  and  marks  an  era  in  the  hi::-tory  of  the 
language.  Several  attempts  had  been  made,^  before  this, 
with  some  degree  of  success.  Of  these  the  dictionary  of 
Bailey,  originally  published  in  1720,  had  gone  through  a 
large  number  of  editions,  and  was  in  current  use,  yet  the 
work  of  Johnson  was  at  once  hailed  as  the  dictionary  of 
English  speech,  and  more  than  any  other  has  continued  to 
be  the  standard  to  the  present  time.  No  other  work  of 
the  kind  has  done  so  much  to  fix  the  external  form  of  the 
language,  and  to  settle  the  meaning  and  use  of  words.  Its 
etymology,  however,  is  specially  defective,  considered  in 
the  light  of  present  investigations.  But  while  aiming  to 
settle  so  far  as  possible  the  current  orthography,  Johnson 
was  not  insensible  to  the  changes  constantly  taking  place. 
"  No  dictionary  of  a  living  language  ever  can  be  perfect, 
since  Avhilst  it  is  hastening  to  publication  some  words  are 
budding,  and  some  are  falling  away."  This  remark  is 
well  confirmed  by  our  most  judicious  lexicographer.  Dr. 
Worcester,  when  he  says,  "  It  is  undoubtedly  true  that 

1  Concluding  part  of  a  letter  to  Sir  William  Wyndham. 

2  See  History  of  English  Lexicography,  Preface  to  Worcester's  Die- 
tionary. 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  149 

there  never  was  so  great  an  influx  of  new  words  into  the 
English  language  during  any  century,  from  the  time  of 
its  first  formation  to  the  time  of  the  first  publication  of 
Johnson's  Dictionary,  as  there  has  been  since  that  event. 
Various  other  changes  have  taken  place  in  the  language. 
Some  words  then  obsolete  have  been  revived,  some  then 
in  use  have  now  become  obsolete,  and  many  have  changed 
their  orthography."  ^ 

Johnson's  English  style  in  written  discourse  was 
marked  by  a  return  to  the  greater  use  of  words  of 
Latin  derivation,  giving  that  peculiar  sonorousness  and 
pomp  of  diction  that  for  want  of  a  better  word  has 
been  called  Johnsonese,  —  and  in  this  respect  he  cannot 
be  said  to  have  aided  the  purity  of  our  English  idiom, 
farther  than  the  use  of  the  language  by  any  strong  clear 
minded  author  tends  to  improve  it.  This  peculiar  style, 
however,  arose  from  no  real  lack  of  a  better  and  hear- 
tier idiom,  as  the  record  of  his  conversations  abundantly 
proves. 

No  one  of  the  three  great  English  historians  of  the  last 
century,  nor  even  Lord  Macaulay  of  the  present,  is  to 
be  commended  as  in  all  respects  a  proper  model  of  Eng- 
lish style,  though  all  have  had,  and  will  continue  to  have 
by  their  works,  a  great  influence.  No  one  of  the  first 
three  was  of  English  education.  The  style  of  Hume, 
while  remarkable  for  its  clearness  and  simplicity,  and 
general  fitness  for  his  theme,  is  not  without  its  Scotti- 
cisms ;  Gibbon's,  though  admirable  in  its  sustained  ma- 
jesty and  brilliancy,  and  still  more  than  Hume's  even, 
adapted  to  the  grandeur  of  his  theme,  —  his  full,  well- 
rounded  periods  so  like  the  steady  tramp  of  the  Roman 
legions,  or  the  triumphal  processions  that  followed  the 
1  Preface  to  Worcester's  Dictionary,  p.  xxv. 


150  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

conquerors- to  the  capitol,  —  is  far  enough  from  the  idio- 
matic force  of  Swift,  the  impassioned  vehemence  of  Mot- 
ley, or  the  pictorial  beauty  of  Prescott ;  and  Robertson 
lacks  both  adaptation  of  style  to  subject  and  idiomatic 
worth,  though  widely  read  in  his  time  and  since,  because 
of  his  subject-matter  and  the  lack  of  better  authors.  The 
style  of  Lord  Macaulay  is  wanting  in  the  calm,  serious 
tone  that  carries  conviction  of  truth.  It  is  too  much 
that  of  the  advocate  ;  too  much  set  upon  striking  effects. 
It  interests  and  captivates,  but  it  has  more  of  daz- 
zling brilliancy  than  the  clear  serene  light  of  truth.  It 
is  not  promotive  of  thought,  nor  suited  to  lodge  great 
truths  in  the  mind.  It  must  not  be  denied  that  it  has 
also  great  merits;  —  great  clearness  and  precision,  beauty 
and  aptness  of  illustration,  marked  by  a  rare  command 
of  all  the  resources  of  the  language.  But  its  popu- 
larity, great  as  it  is,  lacks  the  soberer  qualities  of  style, 
which  are  necessary  to  secure  it  its  present  high  re- 
gard in  after  times,  and  to  make  it  a  safe  model  for 
students. 

The  revival  of  a  better  spirit  of  poetry,  the  study  of 
old  English,  and  the  better  moral  and  religious  sentiment 
that  has  prevailed  the  last  three  fourths  of  a  century, 
have  done  much  to  secure  better  thought  and  better  lan- 
guage, —  have  led  to  a  more  idiomatic  Saxon  style,  not 
only  among  the  prose  writers,  but  still  more  among  the 
poets,  as  Byron,  Wordsworth,  Tennyson,  and  Mrs.  Brown- 
ing. On  the  other  hand  the  influence  of  German  litera- 
ture has  not  been  favorable  to  the  purity  of  our  idiom. 
Mr.  Carlyle,  who  did  most  to  introduce  it  to  the  public, 
developed  a  peculiar  style  for  himself,  which  by  reason 
of  the  oftentimes  valuable  thought  and  earnestness  of 
the   author,  obtains   some  admirers,  and   so   far   exerts 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  151 

an  unwholesome  influence.  So  occasionally  individual 
instances  may  be  expected  of  departures  from  the  com- 
mon standard,  but  the  sober  good  sense  of  the  English 
mind  cannot  long  be  turned  away  by  false  lights. 

In  Great  Britain  there  still  exists  great  diversity  in 
the  use  of  the  language  among  the  different  classes  of 
society.  The  long-settled  habits  and  usages  of  English 
life  do  not  seem  to  be  easily  flexible  to  the  changes  going 
on,  or  to  common  influences,  as  in  this  country.  The 
common  mind  is  moved  more  slowly,  —  diversities  of 
idiom  require  time  to  be  reduced  to  a  common  stand- 
ard ;  new  words,  developed  in  trade  or  the  arts,  or  by 
foreign  intercourse,  are  more  restricted  in  their  use,  be- 
come popularized  less  frequently,  and  only  after  the  lapse 
of  a  longer  time  than  in  this  country.  The  better 
classes  speak  better  and  the  common  people  worse  than 
in  the  United  States,  where  the  democratic  spirit  unfortu- 
nately tends  to  lower  the  standard  from  the  best  use,  and 
the  greater  intercourse  with  all  parts  of  the  country,  by 
migration  and  the  common  issues  of  the  press,  tends  to 
preserve  a  common  idiom.  For  these  reasons,  too,  there 
is  little  doubt  that  the  common  people  of  this  country 
use  a  much  larger  vocabulary  than  the  same  class  in 
Great  Britain.  If  we  add  to  these  the  new  words  that 
have  been  derived  from  our  foreign  population,  from  the 
peculiai'ities  of  our  national  government  and  social  insti- 
tutions, and  from  the  different  circumstances  and  em- 
ployments of  our  people  generally,  we  shall  find  not 
only  a  larger  vocabulary  but  in  many  respects  a  differ- 
ent one  from  that  in  common  use  in  Great  Bi'itain. 
The  various  political,  religious,  and  social  relations  find 
their  proper  expression  in  classes  of  words  peculiar  to 
the  different  countries.     There  are  also  retained  in  this 


152  ELEMENTS   OF  THE 

country,  and  falsely  called  Americanisms,  many  words  of 
good  old  English  stock,  which  have  been  handed  down 
from  the  original  colonists,  but  have  fallen  out  of  use  in 
the  mother  country.  There  are  again  some  words  which 
have  first  obtained  a  special  use  in  their  respective  lo- 
calities, and  have  afterwards  become  naturalized. 

For  a  valuable  analysis  of  words  used  in  different 
senses  in  the  two  countries  the  reader  is  referred  to 
a  paper  on  Provincialisms,  Archaisms,  and  American- 
isms, in  "  Worcester's  Dictionary,"  and  for  a  more  full 
discussion  of  the  subject,  and  for  additional  suggestions, 
to  Marsh,  —  last  lecture  of  his  first  series. 

The  orthography  of  the  "language  can  hardly  yet  be 
considered  as  settled  in  regard  to  all  words,  though  com- 
paratively little  change  has  been  made  on  the  forms  laid 
down  by  Johnson.  Attempts  have  been  made  at  dif- 
ferent times,  as  by  Dr.  Webster,  in  the  earlier  editions 
of  his  Dictionary,  but  with  little  success.  The  language 
is  not  very  submissive  to  the  theories  of  grammarians 
or  lexicographers ;  its  life  and  spontaneity  cannot  long 
be  held  in  abeyance  or  subjected  to  any  predetermined 
forms,  however  plausible  or  well  reasoned.  The  later 
efforts  of  phonographers  meet  no  better  success  with  the 
common  mind,  to  say  nothing  of  the  opposition  of  all  in- 
terested in  philological  studies. 

Of  late  years  the  changes  in  pronunciation  have  been 
greater  than  in  orthography.  And  here  too  the  usage 
in  this  country  is  more  at  variance  with  that  of  Great 
Britain,  This  is  due,  doubtless,  mainly  to  climate.  The 
more  northern  climates  naturally  tend  to  a  more  hurried 
and  less  open  pronunciation,  and  to  throwing  the  accent 
upon  the  first  part  of  the  word,  and  to  slurring  over  the 
latter  part.     In  this  country,  and  the  more  as  one  goes 


ENGLISH  LANGUAGE.  153 

west  or  south,  there  is  noticed  the  tendency  to  throw  the 
accent  more  toward  ihe  penult,  and,  as  Marsh  lias  no- 
ticed, many  proper  names  of  two  syllables,  having  the 
accent  on  the  first  syllable  in  New  England,  take  it  on 
the  last  at  the  "West  and  South. 

In  one  direction  at  least  American  authors  have  en- 
riched the  language,  —  in  that  of  political  discussion. 
The  state  papers  of  the  Revolution  and  the  works  of 
our  great  statesmen,  Hamilton,  Madison,  Jefferson,  the 
Adamses,  and  Webster,  have  taken  up  and  carried  for- 
ward to  greater  completeness  the  work  begun  by  ]\Iilton 
and  Sidney,  and  others,  noted  in  the  political  discussions 
of  the  seventeenth  century  on  British  soil. 

The  language  in  both  countries  owes  much  to  the  ex- 
ample and  influence  of  its  educated  clergymen,  not  more 
perhaps  from  their  public  addresses  and  the  services  of 
the  Sabbath,  than  from  their  private  personal  intercourse 
among  the  people.  They  help  to  preserve  its  dignity 
and  purity ;  they  are  the  conservators  of  the  better 
elements  of  the  popular  diction,  while  the  racier  and  the 
more  idiomatic  are  constantly  renewed  from  the  dialect 
of  common  life. 

The  written  language  of  the  two  nationalities,  as  the 
inheritor  of  all  the  literature  of  the  past,  and  the  embodi- 
ment of  the  utmost  variety  of  thought  on  all  human  in- 
terests, must  remain  substantially  the  same.  Tiie  great 
truths  M'hich  underlie  all  human  progress,  the  conditions 
of  the  world's  evangelization,  and  the  triumph  of  a 
Christian  civilization,  have  been  committed  to  it.  Its  ex- 
tension and  the  conservation  of  its  powers  are  thus  inti- 
mately connected  with  the  progress  of  culture  and  of 
humanity. 


ILLUSTRATIVE    SPECIMENS. 


I.    ORIGINAL     ENGLISH;    ENGLISH     PURE     OR     SDIPLE, 
(SAXON   OR  ANGLO-SAXON.) 

1.  From  the  Voyage  of  Ohther  in  Alfred's   Translation 
of  Orosius,  Book  i. :  —  before  A.  D.  900. 

And  thasr  is  mid  Estum  dheaw,  thonne  thajr  bidh  man 
dead,  thtet  he  lidh  inne  unforbierned  mid  his  magura  and 
freondum  monadh,  ge  hwilum  twegen,  and  tha  kyningas 
and  tha  odhre  heahdhungene  men  swa  micle  lencg  swa 
hi  maran  speda  habbadh  ;  hwilum  healf  gear  thset  hi 
beodh  unforba3rned,  and  licgadh  bufan  eorthan  on  hyra 
husum.  And,  ealle  tha  hwile  the  thtet  he  bidh  inne, 
thajr  sceal  beon  gedrync  and  plega,  odh  thone  da?g  the 
hi  hine  forbasrnadh. 

[And  there  is  with  Esthonians  a  custom,  when  there  is  one 
dead,  that  he  heth  within  unburnt  with  his  kinsmen  and  friends 
a  month,  yea  sometimes  (whiles,  Scot.)  twain,  and  the  kings  and 
the  other  high-spoken-of  men  so  much  (mickle,  Scot.)  longer  as 
they  more  wealth  {lit.  speed)  have;  sometimes  [it  is]  half  a 
year  that  thej'  be  unburnt,  and  he  above  earth  in  their  houses. 
And,  all  the  while  that  the  corpse  is  within,  there  shall  be  (it  is 
the  custom  that  there  be)  drinking  and  play  mi  til  the  day  that 

they  it  burn.] 

{Craik.) 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECniENS.  155 

2.  From  the  latter  portion  of  the  Chronicle:  —  about  WOO. 

A.  D.  1087. —  .  .  .  Dhissum  thus  gedone,  se  cyng 
Willelm  cearde  ongean  to  Normandige.  .  .  He  swealt 
on  Normandige  on  thone  nextan  da?g  a;fter  nativitas  See 
Marie ;  and  man  begyrgede  hine  on  Cathum  ast  See 
[Sei  ?]  Stephanes  mynstre.  .  .  Gif  hwa  gewilniged  to 
gewitane  bu  gedon  man  he  -was,  odhdhe  hwilcne  wurdh- 
scipe  he  hcefde,  odhdhe  hu  fela  lande  he  waere  blaford, 
tbonne  wille  we  be  him  awritan  swa  swa  we  hine  ageaton; 
we  him  onlocodan,  and  odhre  hwile  on  his  hirede  wune- 
don.  .  .  He  sastte  mycel  deorfridh,  and  he  laegde  laga 
thaer  widh  ;  tha^t  swa  hwa  swa  sloge  heort  odhdlie  hinde 
tha3t  hine  man  sceold  blendian.  He  forbead  tha  heortas/ 
swylce  eac  tha  baras.  Swa  swidhe  he  lufode  tha  heodeor 
swylce  he  wsere  heora  fteder.  Eac  he  sajtte  be  tham 
haran  tha3t  hi  mosten  freo  faran.  His  rice  men  hit  mjen- 
don,  and  tha  earme  men  hit  beceorodan ;  ac  he  wiES  swa 
stidh  th^et  he  ne  rohte  heora  eallra  nidh. 

[This  thus  done,  tlie  King  "William  turned  again  to  Normandy. 
...  He  died  in  Normandy  on  tlie  next  day  after  (the)  nativity 
of  St.  Mary  {Nativitas  Sanctce  Maria) ;  and  man  (German  rna7i, 
French  on,  anciently  Jtomme)  buried  him  in  Caen,  at  St.  Stephen's 
minster.  .  .  If  any  may  wish  to  know  hovr  to  do  man  (what 
kind  of  man)  he  was,  or  what  worship  he  had,  or  of  how  many 
lands  he  was  lord,  then  will  we  by  (in  regard  to)  him  write  so 
as  we  him  knew :  we  him  beheld,  and  other  while  in  his  house- 
hold wonned  (dwelt).  .  .  He  set  much  deer  free-ground  (he 
made  many  deer-parks),  and  he   laid  [down]  laws  therewith ; 

1  We  ought,  apparently,  to  read.  That  hica  siua  sloge  hem-t,  and  Swa 
he  forbead  tha  heortas.  The  passage  from  He  scette  mycel  deorfridh  is 
probably  in  rhj-me,  although  Dr.  Ingram's  proposed  substitution  of 
blinde  for  blendian  is  inadmissible  without  a  verb  in  the  infinitive  after 
sceold. 


156  ILLUSTRATIVE   SPECLMENS. 

that  whoso  slew  hare  or  liind  that  him  man  should  blind.  As  he 
forbade  [to  slay]  the  harts,  so  also  the  boars.  So  much  he 
loved  the  high-deer  as  ho  were  their  father.  Also  he  set  by 
(appointed  regarding)  the  hares  that  they  must  free  fare.  His 
rich  men  it  moaned,  and  the  poor  men  it  lamented  ;  but  he  was 
50  stern,  that  he  recked  not  the  hatred  of  them  all.] 

The  element  printed  dh  in  these  two  extracts  is  to  be  sounded 
as  the  th  in  tliis.  It  is  represented  in  the  MSS.,  and  in  the  com- 
mon so-called  Saxon  jirinting,  by  one  character  ;  as  the  th  heard 
in  thin  is  by  another.  But  there  is  by  no  means  a  perfect  corre- 
spondence, as  to  this  matter,  between  the  old  language  and  our 
present  English ;  nor,  indeed,  are  the  two  characters  distin- 
guished with  any  uniformity  of  usage  in  the  MSS. 

iCraik.) 


3.  From  the  Anglo-Saxon  Version  of  the  Holy  Gospels, 
edited  hy  B.  Thorpe,  London,  1842.  Time  about 
1100.     John  iY.l-lQ. 

Tha  se  Hselend  wyste  thcet  tha  Pharisei  gehyrdon 
thaet  he  haifde  ma  leorning-cnyhta  tbonne  lohannes, 
(theah  se  Htelend  ne  fuUode,  ac  hys  leorning-cnyhtas.) 
tha  forlet  he  ludea-land,  and  for  eft  on  Galilea.  Hyra 
gebyrede  thfet  he  sceolde  faran  thurh  Samaria-hmd. 
Witodlice  he  com  on  Samarian  cestre,  the  ys  genemmed 
Sychar,  neah  thara  tune  the  lacob  sealde  losepe  his 
suna.  Thasr  waes  lacobes  wylL  Se  Hrelend  s£et  set 
tham  wylle,  tha  he  wa;s  werig  gegan  :  and  hit  wres  mid- 
dseg.  Tha  com  thser  an  wif  of  Samaria,  wokle  wjeter 
feccan  :  Tha  cwEedh  se  Hfeland  to  hyre  ;  syle  me  drincan. 
(Hys  leorning-cnyhtas  ferdon  tha  to  thfere  ceastre,  woldon 
him  mete  bicgan.)  Tha  cw£edh  tliajt  Samaritanisce  wif 
to   hym  ;  Humeta  bitst   thu  tet  me  drincan,  thonne  thu 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS.  157 

eart  ludeisc,  and  ic  eom  Samaritanisce  wif  ?  ne  brucadh 
ludeas  and  Samaritanisce  metes  tetgaedere.  Tha  and- 
swarode  se  H^elend,  and  cwa?dh  to  hyre  :  Gif  thu  wistest 
Godes  gyfe,  and  hwa^t  se  is  the  cwydh  to  the,  syle  me 
drincan  Tvitodlice ;  thu  bosde  hine  theet  he  sealde  the  lifes 
wjeter. 

In  the  above,  the  aspirate  forms  for  th  and  dh  are  printed  ac- 
cording to  tlie  rule  laid  down  by  Ettmiiller,  following  the  exam- 
ple of  Grimm  and  Eask  :  — 

"  Gothicffi  lingua;  norma  ac  regula  ab  Anglosaxonibus  eo 
perturbata  est,  ut  pro  simplici  Gothorum  aspirata  ^  duobus  ute- 
rentur  signis,  sch.  J)  et  3  (=  th  et  dh),  quorum  alterum  mediis  in 
vocibus  inque  earum  fine  poneretur.  Maximam  partem  etiam 
hbri  scripti  banc  regulam  tuentur,  tamen  noh  semper  sibi  con- 
stant, nam  interdum  voces  a  t  incipiunt,  inque  medio  et  fine  J) 
exliibent."  —  Prcefatio,  Lex.  Anglosax. 


10 


158  ILLUSTIiATIVE  SPECIMENS. 


II.  BROKEN  ENGLISH,  OR   SEMI-ENGLISH  (SEMI-SAXON): 
A.  D.  1150-1250. 

4.  The  Commencement  of  Layamon^s  Brut,  according  to 
the  Oldest  of  the  two  Versions,  MS.  Gott.  Calig. 
A,  ix. :  —  about  1200.'^ 

An  preost  wes  on  leoden  ; 
Layamon  wes  ihoten  ; 
He  wes  Leovenadhes  sone  : 
Lidhe  him  beo  Drihte. 
He  wonede  at  Ernleye, 
At  tedhelen  are  chirechen, 
Uppen  Sevarne  stalhe : 
Sel  thai-  him  thuhte  ; 
On  fest  Radestone ; 
Ther  he  bock  radde. 
Hit  com  him  on  mode, 
And  on  his  mern  thonke, 
Thet  he  wolde  of  Engle 
Tha  Kdhelren  tellen ; 
Wat  heo  ihoten  weoren, 
And  vvonene  heo  comen, 
Tha  Englene  londe 
iErest  ahten 
JEfter  than  flode, 

lln  this  and  other  extracts  (made  hy  Craik)  the  ancient  fashion  of 
writing  and  printing  i  for/,  u  for  v,  and  v  for  it,  in  particular  circum- 
stances, has  not  been  adhered  to,  though  preserved  by  some  of  the 
modern  editors.  It  is  merely  a  ditferent  mode  of  forming  the  letters 
in  question,  which  cannot  be  supposed  to  have  affected  their  sound. 


ILLUSTKATIVE  SPECBIENS.  159 

The  from  Drihtene  com, 

The  al  her  a-quelde 

Quic  that  he  funde, 

Buten  Noe  and  Sem, 

Japhet  and  Cham, 

And  heore  four  wives, 

The  mid  heom  weren  on  archen. 

[A  priest  was  on  earth  (or,  perhaps,  in  tlie  land,  or  among  the 
people);  Layamon  was  [he]  (called);  he  was  Leovenath's  son; 
gracious  to  him  be  [the]  Lord.  He  wonned  (dwelt)  at  Ernley, 
at  a  noble  church,  upon  Severn's  bank,  —  good  there  to  him  [it] 
seemed  —  near  Radestone  ;  there  he  book  read.  It  came  to  him 
in  mind,  and  in  his  chief  (?)  thought,  that  he  would  of  English- 
men the  noble-deeds  tell ;  what  they  called  were,  and  whence 
they  came,  that  English  land  first  owned,  after  the  flood,  that 
from  [the]  Lord  came,  that  all  here  quelled  (destroyed),  quick 
(alive)  that  it  found,  but  Noah  and  Shem,  Japhet  and  Ham,  and 
their  four  wives,  that  with  them  were  in  [the]  ark.] 

In  the  later  version,  MS.  Cott.  Otho,  C.  xiii.,  the  passage 
stands  thus  :  — 

A  prest  Avas  in  londe  ; 

Laweman  was  hote  ; 

He  was  Leucais  sone 

Lef  him  beo  drifte, 

He  wonede  at  Ernleie, 

Wid  than  gode  cnithte  ; 

Uppen  Sevarne  ; 

Merie  ther  him  thohte  ; 

Faste  bi  Radistone : 

Ther  heo  bokes  radde. 

Hit  com  him  on  mode, 

And  on  his  thonke. 

That  he  wolde  of  Engelond 

The  riftnesse  telle  ; 

Wat  the  men  hi-hote  weren. 


160  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

And  wancne  hi  comen, 
The  Englene  lond 
^rest  afden 
After  than  flode, 
That  fram  God  com  ; 
That  al  ere  acwclde 
Cwic  that  hit  funde, 
Bot  Noe  and  Sem, 
Japhet  and  Cam, 
And  hire  four  wifes, 
That  mid  ham  there  weren. 

In  this  version  Sir  F.  Madden  conjectures  that  hote,  in  line  2, 
should  be  ihote;  that  heo,  in  line  10,  should  be  he;  and  that 
wancne,  in  line  16,  should  be  wanene. 

(Craik.) 


LayamorHs  Description  (with  the  two  hemistichs,  or 
short  hnes,  printed  as  a  single  verse)  of  the  arming 
of  Prince  Arthur  before  the  Battle  of  Baddon  Hill, 
or  Bath  (a.  d.  520  ?),  from  the  Brut,  21,149- 
21,568;  Madden,  ii.  464-5:  —  also  given,  with 
one  or  two  var-iations,  hy  Guest,  Eng.  Rh.  ii.  118, 
Wd-.—from  3IS.  Cott.  Calig.  A.  ix:  — about  1200. 

He  heng  an  his  sweore  jenne  sceld  deore  ; 

His  nome  Avas  on  Bruttisc  Pridwen  ihaten  : 

Ther  was  innen  igraven  mid  rede  golde  staven 

An  on-licnes  deore  of  Drihtenes  moder. 

His  spere  he  nom  an  honde,  tha  Ron  wes  ihaten. 

Tha  he  hafden  al  his  iweden  tlui  leop  he  on  his  steden. 

Tha  he  raihte  behalden  tha  bihalves  stoden 

Thene  vaeireste  cniht  the  verde  scolde  leden ; 

Ne  isag  najvere  na  man  selere  cniht  nenne 

Thenne  him  wes  Ardhur,  adhelest  cunnes. 


ILLUSTKATIVE  SPECIMENS.  161 

That  is,  literally  :  — 

He  hung  on  his  neck  a  dear  [precious]  shield ; 

Its  name  was  in  British  called  Pridvven  : 

There  was  within  [on  it]  engraven  Avith  red  gold  tracings 

A  dear  likeness  of  the  Lord's  mother. 

His  spear  lie  took  in  hand,  that  was  called  Ron. 

"When  he  had  all  his  weeds  [accoutrements],  then  leapt  he  on  his 

steed. 
Then  tliev  might  behold  that  beside  stood 
The  fairest  knight  that  host  should  lead ; 
Nor  saw  never  no  man  better  knight  none 
Than  he  was,  Arthur,  noblest  of  kin. 

In  the  later  version,  MS.  Cott.  Otho,  C.  xui.  (1250?),  this 
passage  stands :  — 

He  heng  on  his  swere  one  sceald  deore; 

His  name  was  in  Bruttisse  Pridewyn  ihote  ; 

That  (thar  ?)  was  hine  igraved  on  anlichnesse  of  golde, 

That  was  mid  isothe  Drihtene  moder. 

His  spere  he  nam  an  honde,  that  Ron  was  ihote. 

Tho  he  hadde  al  his  wede,  tho  leop  lie  on  his  stede. 

Tho  hii  mihte  bi-holde  that  thar  bi-halves  were 

Thane  fairest  cniht  that  ferde  sal  leade. 

(The  two  concluding  lines  do  not  occur  in  the  later  MS.) 

The  y  which  occurs  in  Layamon,  Ernleye,  and  other  words,  is 
represented  in  the  original  by  a  character  the  form  of  which,  as 
well  as  its  position,  would  seem  to  indicate  that  it  represented  a 
sound  combining  that  of  (/and  ^,  or  intermediate  between  the  two. 
In  the  modern  language  it  has  for  the  most  part  become  y  before 
a  vowel,  and  g  hard,  or  gh,  elsewhere.  It  never  can  have  had 
any  resemblance  to  the  sound  of  z,  by  which  it  has  sometimes 
been  iguorantly  rendered  in  modern  reprints  of  old  Enghsh  and 
Scottish  texts.  In  the  later  version  of  Layamon  this  character 
appears  much  less  frequently  than  in  the  earlier  version,  and  that 
representing  dh  does  not  occur  at  all. 

{Cruik.) 


1G2  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

6.  Tfie  folloioing  passarjc  of  four  lines  from  both  texts 
will  shoiv  the  change  in  the  form  of  the  possessive 
as  well  as  the  unsettled  usage  of  the  tim£.  —  Mad- 
den's  Layamon,  195G5-69.      Vol.  ii.  p.  397. 

Earlier   Text. 

Al  thene  dsei-lihte, 
Udheres  cnihtes, 
Slogen  and  nomen 
Al  that  heo  neh  comen. 

Later  Text. 

And  al  than  day-liht 
Uter  his  cnihtes, 
Slogen  and  nomen, 
That  hii  neh  comen. 

[  [And]  all  the  daylight  Uther's  (Uther  Ms)  knights  slew  and 
captured  all  that  they  came  nigh.] 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECniENS.  163 


in.   COMPOUND  ENGLISH;   a.  d.  1250  — (EARLY  ENGLISH; 
1250-1350.) 

7.  Dedication  hj  the  Author  of  the  Ormulum  to  his 
Brother:  —  about  1250. 

Nu,  brotherr  Wallterr,  brother  min  afFterr  the  flaeshess 

kinde  ; 
And    bi'otherr  min  i  Crisstenndom  thurrh  fulluhht   and 

thurrh  trowwthe  ; 
And  brotherr  min  i  Godess  hus,  yet  o  the  thride  wise, 
Thurrh   thatt  witt  hafenn    takenn  ba  an   reghellboc  to 

follghenn, 
Unnderr   kanunnkess    had   and    lif,    swa    summ    Sannt 

Awwstin  sette  ; 
Ice  hafe  don  swa  summ  thu  badd,  and  fortheddte  thin 

■\ville ; 
Ice   hafe  wennd   inntill   Ennglissh    goddspelless    halghe 

hire, 
AfFterr  thatt  little  witt  tatt   me  min  Drihhten  hafethth 

lenedd. 

[Now,  brother  Walter,  brother  mine  after  the  flesh's  kind  ; 

And  brother  mine  in  Christendom,  through  baptism  and  through 

truth  (faith) ; 

And  brother  mine  in  God's  house,  yet  in  the  third  wise, 

Througli  (for)  that  we  have  taken  both  one  rule-book  to  follow. 

Under  (the)  canon's  rank  and  life  so  as  Saint  Austin  ruled; 

I  have  done  so  as  thou  badcst,  and  furthered  thy  will  (wish) ; 

I  have  turned  into  English  [the]  Gospel's  Iioly  lore, 

After  that  little  wit  that  me  my  Lord  hath  lent.] 

(Cralk.) 


164  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 


On  the  Typical  Meaning  of  Unleavened  Bread.     In 
single  lines  according  to  the  Oxford  Edition  of  the 
Ormulum,  by  Robert  Meadows    White,  D.  D.      Ox- 
ford, 1852.  — 1st  vol.jy.  53,  1590-1605. 

FoiT  tberrflinng  ^  breed  iss  clene  broed, 

Forr  tbat  itt  iss  unnberrmedd,^ 

And  itt  bitacnethth  clene  lif, 

And  alle  clene  thajwess,^ 

And  clene  tbohht,  and  clene  word, 

And  alle  clene  dedess. 

And  giff  thin  heorrte  iss  barrd  and  starrc. 

And  stedefasst  o  Criste 

To  tholenn  *  forr  the  lufe  off  himm 

All  that  tatt  is  to  dreghenn,^ 

Tha  lakesst®  tu  thin  Drihhtin  "^  swa 

Gastlike  i  thine  tha^wess, 

Withth  fasst  ^  and  findig  ®  laf  and  barrd 

Withthinnenn  and  withthutenn, 

Swa  thatt  itt  magg  wel  hellpenn  the 

To  winnen  Godess  are.-"^ 


9.  Proclamation  of  Henry  III.,  a.  d.,  1258. 
What  is  commonly  given  as  our  earliest  specimen  of 
English    (as   distinguished   from    what   is    called    Semi- 
Saxon)  is  a  proclamatio;i  issued  in  1258,  in  the  name 


1  Unleavened. 

"  Unferniented. 

8  Services. 

«  To  suffer. 

5  To  be  endured. 

6  Sei-vest. 

T  Lord. 

8  Close, 
w  Favor. 

9  Firm. 

ILLUSTKATIVE  SPECIMENS.  1G5 

of  King  Henry  III.,  while  under  the  control  of  the 
Council  appointed  at  what  is  called  "  the  mad  parlia- 
ment" of  Oxford,  of  which  the  following  is  the  copy 
addressed  to  the  people  of  Huntingdonshire :  — 

"  Henr'  thurg  godes  fultume  King  on  Engleneloande 
Lhoauerd  on  Yrloand  Duk'  on  Norm'  on  Aquitain'  and 
Eorl  on  Aniow,  send  igretinge  to  alle  hise  halde,  ilaerde 
and  ilaewed,  on  Huntendon'  schir' 

"  Thaet  witen  ge  wel  alle  thaet  we  willen  and  unnen 
thaet,  thaet  ure  raedesmen  alle  other  the  moare  dael  of 
heom  thaet  beoth  ichosen  thurg  us  and  thurg  thaet 
loandes  folk  one  ure  kuneriche  habbeth  idon  and  schul- 
len  don  in  the  worthnesse  of  gode,  and  on  ure  treovvthe 
for  the  freme  of  the  loande  thurg  the  besigte  of  than  to 
foreniseide  redesmen  beo  stedefaest  and  ilestinde  in  alle 
thinge  abuten  aende. 

"And  we  hoaten  alle  ure  treowe  in  the  treowthe  thaet 
heo  us  ogen  thaet  heo  stedefaesliche  healden  and  swerien 
to  healden  and  to  werien  the  isetnesses  thet  beon  imakede 
and  beon  to  makien  thurg  than  to  foren  iseide  raedesmen 
other  thurg  the  moare  dael  of  heom  alswo  alse  hit  is  bi- 
foren  iseid. 

"  And  thaet  aehc  other  helpe  thaet  for  to  done  bi  than 
ilche  othe  agenes  alle  men  rigt  for  to  done  and  to  foan- 
gen,  and  non  ne  mine  of  loand  ne  of  egte,  wherthurg  this 
besigte  muge  beon  ilet  other  iwersed  on  onie  wise.  And 
gif  oni  other  onie  cumen  her  ongenes  we  willen  and  hoaten 
thaet  alle  ure  treowe  heom  healden  deadliche  ifoan. 

"  And  for  thaet  we  willen  thaet  this  beo  stedefaest  and 
lestinde.  We  senden  gew  this  writ  open  iseined  with  vre 
seel  to  halden  amanges  gew  ine  hord.  Witnesse  ussel- 
vien  aet  Lunden',  thane  egtetenthe  day  on  the  monthe 
of  Octobr'  in  the  two  and  fowertighte  yeare  of  ure  crun- 
inge." 


166  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

[Henry,  through  God's  lielp,  King  in  England,  Lord  in  Ireland, 
Duke  in  Normandy,  in  Aquitain,  and  Earl  in  Anjou,  sends  greet- 
ing to  all  his  subjects,  learned  and  lay,  in  Iluntingdonsliire. 

This  know  ye  well  all  that  we  will  and  grant  that  that  our 
counsellors,  all  or  the  more  part  of  them,  that  be  chosen  through 
us  and  through  the  land's  folk  in  our  kingdom,  have  done  and 
shall  do,  in  the  honor  of  God  and  in  our  truth  (allegiance),  for 
the  good  of  the  land,  through  the  business  (act)  of  those  to-fore- 
said  counsellors,  be  steadfast  and  lasting  in  all  tilings  but  (with- 
out) end. 

And  we  enjoin  all  our  lieges,  in  the  truth  (allegiance)  that  they 
us  owe,  that  they  steadfastly  hold,  and  swear  to  hold  and  to  de- 
fend, the  ordinances  that  be  made  and  be  to  make  through  the 
to-foresaid  counsellors,  or  through  the  more  part  of  them,  all  so 
as  it  is  before  said. 

And  that  each  other  help  that  for  to  do,  by  them  [to]  each 
other  against  all  men  right  for  to  do  and  to  promote.  And  none, 
nor  of  my  land  nor  elsewhere,  through  this  business  may  be  let 
(hindered)  or  damaged  in  any  wise.  And  if  any  man  or  any 
woman  come  them  against,  we  will  and  enjoin  that  all  our  lieges 
them  hold  deadly  foes. 

And,  for  that  we  will  that  this  be  steadfast  and  lasting,  we 
send  you  this  writ  open,  signed  with  our  seal,  to  hold  amongst 
you  in  hoard  (store).  Witness  ourselves  at  London,  this  eigh- 
teenth day  in  the  month  of  October,  in  the  two  and  fortieth  year 
of  our  crowning.^  ] 

1  This  proclamation  was  first  printed  by  Somner,  in  his  Dictionarium 
Saxonico-Latino-Anglicum,  fol.  Oxen.  1C59.  In  the  Record  Commis- 
sion edition  of  Rymei'''s  Fadera,  vol.  i.  (1816),  p.  378,  it  is  entitled, 
"  Carta  Regis  in  idiomate  Anglico,  ad  singulos  comitatus  AngliiB  et 
Hiberniffi  super  reformatione  status  regni  per  proceres  ejusdem  regni;" 
and  is  stated  to  be  there  given  as  transcribed  from  the  original  among 
the  Patent  Rolls  in  the  Tower  of  London  (  "  Pat.  43,  Hen.  IIL  m.  15, 
in  Turr.  Loud.").  The  present  transcript,  however,  will  be  found, 
we  believe,  to  be  more  correct  than  any  hitherto  published. 

"  This  proclamation,"  Dr.  Lingard  observes,  "is  in  both  languages 
[English  and  French],  the  first  of  that  description  which  has  been 
preserved  since  the  reign  of  Henry  I.,  though  I  do  not  understand  how 
such  proclamations  could  have  become  known  to  the  people  unless 
they  were  published  in  the  English  language." — Hist.  Eng.  III.  125. 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS.  167 

But  this  official  paper  can  scarcely  be  safely  quoted  as 
exhibiting  the  current  language  of  the  time.  Like  all 
such  documents,  it  is  made  up  in  great  part  of  established 
phrases  of  form,  many  of  which  had  probably  become 
obsolete  in  ordinary  speech  and  writing.  The  English 
of  the  proclamation  of  1258  is  much  less  modern  than 
that  of  the  Ormulum,  and  fully  as  near  to  the  earlier 
form  of  the  language,  both  in  the  words  and  in  the  gram- 
mar, as  any  part  of  Layamon's  Chronicle,  if  not  rather 
more  so.  —  Craik's  outlines,  pp.  72-75. 


10.  From  the  beginning  of  a  song  against  the  King  of 
Almaigne.  Reign  of  Henry  III.,  near  12G4.  From 
Political  Songs,  edited  hy  Wright,  printed  for  the 
Camden  Society:  London,  1839.     p.  69. 

1.     Sitteth  alle  stille  ant  herkneth  to  me ; 
The  Kyn  of  Alemaigne,  bi  mi  leaute,^ 
Thritti  thousent  pound  askede  he 
For  te  make  the  pees  in  the  countre, 

'ant  so  he  dude  moi'e. 
Richard  thah  thou  be  ever  trichard  ^ 

trichen  shalt  thou  never  more. 

2.     Richard  of  Alemaigne,  whil  that  he  wes  kyng, 
He  spende  al  is  tresour  opon  swy vyng ;  ^ 
Haveth  he  nout  of  Walingford  o  ferlyng ;  ^ 
Let  him  habbe,  ase  he  brew,  bale  to  dryng,^ 

maugre  Wyndesore. 
Richard,  thah  thou  be  ever  trichard 
trichen  shalt  thou  never  more. 
1  Loyalty.        2  Traitor.        3  Luxury.        4  Furlong.         s  Drink. 


1G8  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

11.  Tlie  Commencement  of  Robert  of  Gloucester'' s  Chronicle 
as  jjrinted  by  Hearne  :  —  about  1300. 

Engelond  ys  a  wel  god  lond,  icli  wcnc  of  eche  lend  best, 
Yset  in  the  ende  of  the  world,  as  al  in  the  West. 
The  see  goth  hym  al  a  boute,  he  stont  as  an  yle. 
Here  fon  heo  durre  the  lasse  doute,  but  hit  be  thorw  gyle 
Of  fol  of  the  selve  lond,  as  me  hath  y  seye  wyle. 
From  South  to  North  he  is  long  eighte  hondred  myle ; 
And    foure    hondred    myle    brod    from    Est  to  West  to 

wende, 
Amydde  tho  lond  as  yt  be,  and  noght  as  by  the  on  ende. 
Plente  me  may  in  Engelond  of  alle  gode  y  se, 
Bute  folc  yt  for  gulte  other  yeres  the  worse  be. 
For  Engelond  ys  ful  ynow  of  fruyt  and  of  tren, 
Of  wodes  and  of  parkes,  that  joye  yt  ys  to  sen ; 
Of  foules  and  of  bestes,  of  wylde  and  tame  al  so ; 
Of  salt  fysch  and  eche  fresch,  and  fayre  ry veres  ther  to ; 
Of  welles  swete  and  colde  ynow,  of  lesen  and  of  mede ; 
Of  selver  or  and  of  gold,  of  tyn  and  of  lede  ; 
Of  stel,  of  yrn,  and  of  bras ;  of  god  corn  gret  won 
Of  whyte  and  of  wolle  god,  betere  ne  may  be  non. 

[England  is  a  very  good  laud,  I  ween  of  every  land  [the]  best ; 
set  in  the  end  of  the  world,  as  [being]  wholly  in  the  west.  The 
sea  goeth  it  all  about ;  it  standeth  as  an  isle.  Their  foes  they 
need  the  less  fear,  except  it  be  through  guile  of  folk  of  the  same 
land,  as  one  hath  seen  sometimes.  From  South  to  North  it  is 
long  eight  hundred  mile  ;  and  four  hundred  mile  broad  from 
East  to  West  to  wend,  amid  the  land  as  it  be,  and  not  as  by  the 
one  end.  Plenty  one  may  in  England  of  all  good  see,  except 
(were  it  not  for)  folk  that  for  guilt  some  years  the  worse  be. 
For  England  is  full  enough  of  fruit  and  of  trees ;  of  woods  and 
of  parks,  that  joy  it  is  to  see  ;  of  fowls  and  of  beasts,  of  wild  and 
tame  also ;  of  salt  fish  and  eke  fresh,  and  fair  rivers  thereto  ;  of 


ILLUSTRATIVE   SPECIMENS.  169 

wells  sweet  and  cold  enow,  of  pasture  and  of  mead ;  of  silver  ore 
and  of  gold,  of  tin  and  of  lead ;  of  steel,  of  iron,  and  of  brass ; 
of  good  corn  great  store ;  of  wheat  and  of  good  wool,  better  may 
be  none.]  (CraiL) 

12.  Beginning  of  a  song  on  the  execution  of  Sir  Simon 

Fraser.     Wright's  edition  as  above,  p.  212,  —  1306. 
Lystneth,  lordynges,  a  new  song  icluille  ^  bigynne, 
Of  the  tray  tours  of  Scotlond  that  take  beth  wyth  gynne;^ 
Mon  that  loveth  falsnesse  and  nule  never  blynne,^ 
Sore  may  him  drede  the  lyf  that  he  is  ynne, 
ich  understonde : 

Selde  wes  he  glad 

That  never  nes  a-sad 

Of  nythe  *  ant  of  onde.® 


13.  Medical  Recipes  from  Reliquice  Antiquce.     From  a 
MS.  of  the  fourteenth  century.     Northern  dialect. 

For  hym  that  haves  the  squynansy  :  tak  a  fatte  katte, 
and  fla  hit  wele,  and  clene,  and  draw  oute  the  guttes, 
and  tak  the  grees  of  an  urcheon,  and  the  fatte  of  a  bare, 
and  resynes  *  *  *  and  sauge,  and  gumme  of  wode- 
bynde,  and  virgyn  wax;  al  this  raye  ^  sraal,  and  fai'se' 
the  catte  within  als  thu  farses  a  gos,  rost  hit  hale,  and 
geder  the  grees  and  enoynt  hym  tharwith.  —  p.  51. 

For  to  make  a  woman's  neke  white  and  softe :  tak 
fresch  swynes  grees  molten,  and  hennes  grees  and  the 
white  of  egges  half  rosted,  and  do  thereto  a  lytel  popyl 
mele,  enoynt  hir  therwith  ofte.  —  p.  53. 

1 1  shall.  2  ^je  taken  in  a  trap.  3  "Will  never  leave  it. 

*  Env3'.        5  Spite.  (The  two  last  are  according  to  Coleridge's 

Glossarial  Index,  rather  than  Wright's  translation.) 
6  Pound.  'i  StiifF  —  Latin  Farcio. 


170  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

14.  The  beginning  and  end  of  an  Elegy  on  the  death  of 
Edward  I.  Probably  ivritten  soon  after  his  death, 
1307.      Wright's  Political  songs,  pp.  246,  2o0. 

Alle  that  beoth  of  liuerte  trewe, 
A  stounde  ^  herkneth  to  my  song, 
~  Of  duel  ^  that  deth  hath  diht  us  newe, 
That  maketh  me  syke  ant  sorewe  among ;  ^ 
Of  a  knyght  that  wes  so  strong, 
Of  wham  God  hath  don  ys  wille : 
Me  thuncketh  that  deth  hath  don  us  wrong. 


Thah  mi  tonge  were  mad  of  stel, 
Ant  min  herte  y-yote  *  of  bras, 
The  godnesse  myht  y  never  telle 
That  with  Kyng  Edward  was ; 
Kyng,  as  thou  art  cleped  conquerour 
In  uch  bataille  thou  hadest  pris  ; 
God  bringe  thi  soule  to  the  honour 
That  ever  wes  ant  ever  ys. 
That  lesteth  ay  withouten  ende  ! 
Bidde  me  God  ant  oure  Ledy, 
To  thilke  blisse  Jesus  us  sende.     Amen. 


15.  Robert  de  Brunne's  Account  of  the  Alteration  of  ike 
Coinage  by  Edward  1.  in  1282,  from  his  Transla- 
tion of  Peter  Langtoffs  Chronicle  :  —  cd)out  1340. 

Now  turnes  Edward  ageyn  to  London  his  cite, 
And  wille  wite  certeyn  ^  who  schent  ®  has  his  mone. 

1  Awhile.  2  Grief — P'rench.  3  By  turns. 

*  Made.  ^  Know  certainly.  6  Corrupted. 


ILLUSTKATIVE  SPECIMENS.  171 

Of  clippers,  of  roungers,^  of  suilk  ^  takes  he  questis  ; 
Old  used  traitoures  ilk  at  other  hand  kestis. 
Ilk  these  other  out  said,  ilk  a  schrewe  other  greves  ;  ^ 
Of  fele  *  were  handes  laid,  and  hanged  ther  as  theves. 
Edward  did  smyte  ^  rounde  penj,  halfpeny,  ferthing, 
The  croise  ^  passed  the  boimde  of  alle  thorghout  the  ryng. 
The  kynge's  side  salle  be  the  hede  and  his  name  writen ; 
The  croyce  side  what  cite  it  was  in  coyned  and  smyten. 
The  povere  man  ne  the  preste  the  peny  prayses  no  thing. 
Men  gyf  God  the  lest,'^  the  fesse  ^  him  with  a  ferthing. 
A  thousand  and  two  hundred  and  fourscore  yeres  mo,^ 
Of  this  mone  men  wondred  first  when  it  gan  go.^" 

1  Nippers.  2  Such. 

3  Ilk  and  ilk  a  mean  every  with  De  Brunne,  as  they  still  do  in  the 
Scottish  dialect;  and  kestis  is  casts;  but,  perhaps,  scarcely  more  than 
a  doubtful  sense  can  be  extracted  from  these  two  lines,  as  Hearne  has 
printed  them.  His  Glossary  affords  no  aid  towards  their  interpreta- 
tion. 

4  Many.  5  Strike. 

6  Cross  (the  oi  or  oy  being  probably  pronounced  nearly  as  our  0  in 
the  modern  form  of  the  word,  or  somewhat  as  the  oi  in  the  French 
croix). 

T  Least.  8  They  feast.  9  More. 

1"  From  Hearne's  Edition,  238,  239.  —  Of  course  the  e  makes  a  dis- 
tinct syllable  in  such  words  as  cite  and  7none. 

( Cratk.) 


IV.  JIIDDLE  EXGLISH,  A.  d.  1350-1550. 
(Old  English.) 

16.    Commencement  of  Mhiot's  Poem  on  the  Battle   of 
IluUdon  Hill,  fought  A.  D.  1333  :  —  about  1350. 

Trew  king,  that  sittes  in  trone, 

Unto  the  I  tell  my  tale, 
And  unto  the  I  bid  a  bone  ^ 

For  thou  ert  bute  ^  of  all  my  bale  : 
Als  thou  made  midelerd  and  the  mone,^ 

And  bestes  and  fowles  grete  and  smale, 
Unto  me  send  thi  socore  sone, 

And  dresce  my  dedes  in  this  dale.^ 

(Craik.) 


17.   Commencement  of  the  Vision  of  Piers  Ploughman, 
from  Wright's  Edition,  1842  :  —  about  1360. 

In  a  somer  seson 

"Whan  sof'te  was  the  sonne, 

I  shoop  me  into  shroudes  ^ 

As  I  a  sheep  ®  weere, 

In  habite  as  an  heremite 

Unholy  of  werkes, 

Went  wide  in  this  world 

Wondres  to  here  ; 

Ac  '^  on  a  May  morwenynge 

1  Offer  a  prayer.  -  Boot,  remedy. 

3  As  thou  niadest  middle-earth  and  the  moon. 

•*  Direct  my  deeds  in  this  vale  (of  misery). 

5  I  put  myself  into  clothes.  6  Shepherd.  '  And. 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS.  173 

On  Malverne  hilles 
Me  befel  a  ferlj/ 
Of  fairye  me  thoghte. 
I  was  wery  ^  for-wandred, 
And  went  me  to  reste 
Uudei'  a  brood  ^  bank 
By  a  bournes  syde  ; 
And  as  I  lay  and  lenede, 
And  loked  on  the  watres, 
I  slombred  into  a  slepyng, 
It  sweyed  so  murye.* 

( Craik. ) 


18.  Other  passages  from  Piers  Ploughman  to  shoto  the 
combination  of  verbs  with  pronouns,  and  the  allusion 
to  Robin  Hood.    2d  edition  by  Thomas  Wright,  1856. 

"  Lentestow  *  evere  Lordes 

For  love  of  hire  mayntenaunce  ?  " 

"  Ye,  I  have  lent  to  Lordes, 

Loved  me  nevere  after, 

And  have  y-maad  many  a  knight, 

Bothe  mercer  and  draper, 

That  payed  nevere  for  his  prentishode 

Noght  a  peire  gloves." 

"  Hastow  ®  pite  on  povere  men. 

That  mote  nedes  borwe  ?  " 

"  I  have  as  much  pite  of  povere  men 

As  pedlere  hath  of  cattes, 

That  wolde  kille  them,  if  he  cacche  hem  myghte. 

For  coveitise  of  hir  skynnes." 

1  Wonder.  2  Weary.  3  Broad. 

4  It  sounded  so  pleasant.         5  Lende.st  thou.  6  Hast  thou, 

11 


174  ILLUSTRATIVE   SPECIMENS. 

"Artow^  manlich  among  tlii  neghebores 

Of  thi  mete  and  drynke  ?  " 

"  I  am  holden,"  quod  he,  "  as  hende 

As  hound  is  in  kichene, 

Amonges  my  neghebores,  namely, 

Swiche  a  name  ich  have." 

2977-2997. 

If  I  sholde  deye  bi  tliis  day, 

Me  list  nought  to  loke  ; 

I  kan  noght  parfitly  my  pater-noster, 

As  the  preest  it  syngeth  ; 

But  I  kan  rymes  of  Robin  Hood, 

And  Randolf  erl  of  Chestre  ; 

Ac  neither  of  oure  Lord  ne  of  oure  Lady 

The  leeste  that  evere  was  maked. 

3273-3281. 


19.  Commencement  of  the  Seventh  Chapter  of  Sir  John 
MandeviVs  Travels,  entitled  "  Of  the  Pilgrimages 
in  Jerusalem,  and  of  the  Holy  Places  thereaboute," 
from  the  Cotton  MS.  Titus,  C.  xvi.,  tvhich  is  believed 
to  have  been  written  about  the  gear  1400  :  —  about 
1370.2 

After  for  to  speke  of  Jerusalem  the  holy  cytee,  ye 
schull  undirstonde  that  it  stont  full  faire  betwene  hilles, 
and  there  be  no  ryveres  ne  welles,  but  watar  cometh  by 
condyte  from  Ebron.  And  yee  schulle  understonde  that 
Jerusalem  of  olde  tyme,  unto  the  tyme  of  Melchisedech, 
was  cleped  Jebus  ;  and  after  it  was  clept  Salem,  unto  the 
tyme  of  Kyng  David,  that  put  these  two  names  to  gider, 

1  Art  thou. 

2  This  text  Tvas  first  published  in  a  contribution  to  the  Pictorial 
History  of  England  by  Sir  Henry  Ellis. 


ILLUSTRATIVE   SPECIMENS.  175 

and  cleped  it  Jerosolomye.  And  after  that  men  cleped 
it  Jerusalem,  and  so  it  is  cleped  yit.  And  aboute  Jeru- 
salem is  the  kyngdom  of  Surrye  (Syria).  And  there 
besyde  is  the  lond  of  Palestyne.  And  besyde  it  is  Asco- 
lon.  And  besyde  that  is  the  lond  of  Maritanie.  But 
Jerusalem  is  in  the  lond  of  Judee  ;  and  it  is  clept  Jude 
for  that  Judas  Machabeus  was  kyng  of  that  contree. 
And  it  marcheth  estward  to  the  kyngdom  of  Araby ;  on 
the  south  syde  to  the  lond  of  Egipt ;  and  on  the  west 
syde  to  the  Grete  See.  On  the  north  syde  toward  the 
kyngdom  of  Surrye,  and  to  the  see  of  Cypre. 

iCraik.) 


20.  MandeviVs  book  authorized  by  the  Pope.  HalUioeWs 
Edition,  reprinted  from  the  edition  of  1725,  pp. 
314,  315. 

And  zee  schuUe  undirstonde,  zif  it  lyke  zou,  that  at 
myn  Horn  comynge,  I  cam  to  Rome,  and  schewed  ray 
Lif  to  oure  holy  Fadir  the  Pope,  and  was  assoylled  of  alle 
that  lay  in  my  Conscience,  of  many  a  dyverse  grevous 
poynt :  as  men  mosten  nedes,  that  ben  in  company, 
dwellyng  amonges  so  many  a  dyverse  folk  of  dyverse 
Secte  and  of  Beleeve,  as  I  have  ben.  And  amonges  alle 
I  schewed  hym  this  Tretys  that  I  had  made  aftre  inform- 
acioun  of  men,  that  knewen  of  thinges,  that  I  had  not  seen 
my  self ;  and  also  of  Marveyles  and  Customes  that  I  hadde 
seen  my  self;  as  fer  as  God  wolde  zeve  me  Grace  :  and 
besoughte  his  holy  Fadirhode,  that  my  Boke  myghten 
be  examyned  and  corrected  be  Avys  of  his  wyse  and 
discreet  Conseille.  And  our  holy  Fadir,  of  his  special 
grace,  remytted  my  Boke  to  ben  examyned  and  preved  be 
the  Avys  of  his  seyd  Conseille.     Be  the  whiche,  my  Boke 


176  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

was  preeved  for  trewe  ;  in  so  raoclie  that  tliei  sclicvved 
me  a  Boke,  that  my  Boke  was  examynde  by,  that  com- 
prehended fulle  moche  more,  be  an  hundred  part ;  be  the 
whiche,  the  Ma])pa  Mundi  was  made  after.  And  so  my 
Boke  (alle  be  it  that  many  men  ne  list  not  to  zeve  cre- 
dence to  no  tiling,  but  to  that  that  thei  seen  with  hii-e  Eye, 
ne  be  the  Auctour  ne  the  persone  never  so  trewe)  is  af- 
fermed  and  preved  be  our  holy  Fadir,  in  maner  and  forme 
as  I  have  seyd.^ 


21.   TTie  fourth  Psalm,  —  WycUffile  versions  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, 1380.^ 

Earlier    Version. 

"Whan  I  inwardli  clepide,  ful  out  herde  me  the  God  of 
my  rightwisnesse ;  in  tribulacioun  thou  spraddest  out  to 
me.  Haue  merci  of  me ;  and  full  out  here  myn  orisoun. 
Sones  of  men,  hou  longe  with  greuous  herte  ?  Whereto 
looue  yee  vanyte,  and  sechen  lesing  ?  And  witeth,  for 
the  Lox"d  hath  maad  merueilous  his  seynt ;  the  Lord  ful 
out  shal  here  me,  whan  I  shall  crie  to  hym.  Wrathe 
yee,  and  wileth  not  synnen ;  that  yee  seyn  in  youre  hertis 
and  in  youre  couchis,  have  yee  compunccioun.  Sacri- 
fiseth  sacrifise  of  rightwisnesse,  and  hopeth  in  the  Lord ; 
many  seyn,  who  shewith  to  vs  goode  thingis  ?  Markid 
is  vpon  vs  the  light  of  thi  chere.  Lord  ;  thou  geve  glad- 

1  The  spelling  of  this  edition  differs  manifestly  to  some  extent  from 
the  one  cited  by  Craik.  The  greater  number  of  capital  letters  may  be 
due  to  the  printer  in  1725. 

2  According  to  the  text  published  in  The  Holij  Bible  ■  •  •  made  from 
the  Latin  Vulgate,  by  John  Wijdiffe  and  bis  followers:  Edited  by  the 
Rev.  Josiah  Forshall  and  Sir  Frederic  Madden,  K.  H.  4  vols.  4to. 
Oxford,  1850. 


ILLUSTRATIVE   SPECIMENS.  177 

nesse  in  myn  herte.  Of  the  frut  of  whete,  win,  and  oile 
of  hem;  thei  ben  multiplied.  In  pes  into  itself;  I  shal 
slepe,  and  reste.  For  thou  Lord  ;  singuleiii  in  hope  hast 
togidere  set  me. 

Later    Version. 

"Whanne  y  inwardli  clepid,  God  of  my  rightwisnesse 
herde  me ;  in  tribulacioun  thou  hast  alargid  to  me. 
Haue  thou  mercy  on  me ;  and  here  thou  my  preier. 
Sones  of  men,  how  long  ben  ze  of  heuy  herte  ?  Whi 
louen  ze  vanite,  and  seken  a  leesyng  ?  and  wite  ze  that 
the  Lord  hath  maad  merueilous  his  hooli  man  ;  the  Lord 
schal  het-e  me  whanne  Y  schal  crye  to  hym.  Be  ze 
wrothe,  and  nyle  ze  do  synne ;  and  for  tho  tliingis 
whiche  ze  seien  in  zoure  hertis  and  in  zoure  beddis,  be  ze 
compunct.  Sacrifie  ze  the  sacrifice  of  rightfulnesse, 
and  hope  ze  in  the  Lord ;  many  seien.  Who  schewide 
goodis  to  vs  ?  Lord,  the  light  of  thi  cheer  is  markid  on 
vs  ;  thou  hast  zove  gladnesse  in  myn  herte.  Thei  ben 
multiplied  of  the  fruit  of  whete,  and  of  wyn  ;  and  of  her 
oile.  In  pees  in  the  same  thing  ;  Y  schal  slepe,  and  take 
reste.     For  thou,  Lord  ;  hast  set  me  singulerli  in  hope. 


22.  Beginning  of  the  1  ^ili  Chapter  of  St.  Luke,  from  the 
Versions  ascribed  to  Wycliffe  and  his  followers: 
—  about  1380. 

Earlier  Version. 

Forsothe  he  seide  also  to  his  disciplis,  Ther  was  sum 
riche  man,  that  hadde  a  fermour,  ether  a  bally  ;  and  this 
was  defamyd  anentis  him,  as  he  hadde  wastid  his  goodis. 
And  he  clepide  him,  and  seide  to  him,  What  heere  I  this 


178  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

thing  of  thee  ?  yeld  resoun  of  thi  ferrae,  for  now  thou 
schalt  not  mowe  holde  thi  ferme.  Forsoth  the  ferraour 
seide  with  ynne  him  silf,  What  schal  I  do,  for  my  lord 
takith  awey  fro  me  the  ferrae  ?  I  may  not  delve,  I  am 
aschamyd  to  begge.  I  woot  what  I  schal  do,  that, 
whanne  I  schal  be  removyd  fro  the  ferme,  thei  receyve 
me  in  to  her  housis.  And,  alle  the  dettours  of  the  lord 
clepid  to  gidere,  he  seide  to  the  firste,  IIou  moche  owist 
thou  to  ray  lord?  And  he  seide  to  him.  An  hundrid 
barelis  of  oyle.  And  he  seide  to  him,  Taak  thin  obliga- 
cioun,  and  sitte  soon,  and  wryt  fyfti.  Aftirward  he  seide 
to  another,  Sothli  hou  raoche  owist  thou  ?  Which  seide, 
An  hundrid  mesuris  of  whete.  And  he  seide  to  him, 
Tak  thi  lettris,  and  wryt  foure  score.  And  the  lord 
preiside  the  ferraour  of  wickidnesse,  for  he  hadde  don 
prudently  ;  for  the  sones  of  this  world  ben  more  prudent 
in  her  generacioun  that  the  sones  of  light.  And  I  seie 
to  you,  make  to  you  frendes  of  the  richesse  of  wickid- 
nesse, that,  whan  ye  shulen  fayle,  thei  receyve  you  in  to 
everlastynge  tabernaclis. 

The  difference  in  the  text  of  the  two  versions  of  the  New 
Testament  is  much  less  than  in  the  Old.  The  variations  are  not 
such  as  to  show  any  marked  progress  in  the  language ;  some- 
times even  older  forms  occur  in  the  later  text,  though  the  idiom 
is  on  the  whole  more  in  the  modern  style. 

Later  Version. 

He  seide  also  to  hise  disciples,  Ther  was  a  riche  man, 
that  hadde  a  baili ;  and  this  was  defamed  to  him,  as  he 
hadde  wastid  his  goodis.  And  he  clepide  hym  and  seide 
to  hym,  What  here  Y  this  thing  of  thee  ?  yelde  reckynyng 
of  thi  baili,  for  thou  might  not  now  be  baili.  And  the 
baili  seide  with  ynne  him  silf,  What  schal  Y  do,  for  my 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS.  179 

lord  takith  awei  fro  me  the  baili  ?  delfe  mai  Y  not,  I 
schame  to  begge.  Y  woot  wliat  Y  scbol  do,  tliat  whanne 
Y  am  remeued  fro  tbe  baili,  thei  resseyue  me  in  to  her 
hous.  Therfor  wbanne  alle  tbe  dettours  of  bis  lord 
weren  clepid  togider,  be  seide  to  tbe  firste.  How  mycbe 
owist  tbou  to  my  lord  ?  and  he  seide,  an  bundrid  barelis 
of  oyle.  And  be  seide  to  bym,  take  tbi  caucioun,  and 
sitte  soone,  and  write  fifti.  Aftirward  be  seide  to  another, 
and  how  mycbe  owist  tbou  ?  "Which  answerde,  An  bun- 
drid coris  of  whete.  And  be  seide  to  bym,  Take  tbi  let- 
tris  and  write  foure  scoore.  And  the  lord  preiside  the 
baili  of  wickydnesse,  for  be  hadde  do  prudentli ;  for  the 
sones  of  this  world  ben  more  prudent  in  ther  generacioun 
than  the  sones  of  light.  And  Y  seie  to  you,  make  ye  to 
you  freendis  of  the  ritchesse  of  wickidnesse,  that  wbanne 
ye  scbulen  fayle,  thei  resseyue  you  in  to  everlastynge  ta- 
bernaclis. 

The  initial  Saxon  character,  which  in  the  second  extract  from 
the  Psalms  is  printed  z,  is  printed  y  in  the  above,  as  you  instead 
of  zou ;  and  when  it  occurs  in  the  middle  of  a  word,  r/Ii,  as  in 
light.  The  actual  sound  was  probably  different  from  either,  but 
at  length  passed  over  into  these  later  forms. 


23.  Extract  from  a  Sermon  against  3Iiracle-pJays,  from 
a  MS.  volume  of  English  Sermons,  written  at  the 
latter  end  of  the  fourteenth  century.  —  Reliquice  An- 
tiquce,  p.  42. 

Here  bigynnis  a  tretise  of  miraclis  pleyingc.  Know 
yee,  Cristen  men,  that  as  Crist  God  and  man  is  bothe 
weye,  trewth,  and  lif,  as  seith  tbe  gospel  of  Jon,  weye 
to  the  errynge,  trewth  to  the  unknowyng  and  douting,  lif 
to  the  stryunge  to  hevene  and  weryinge,  so  Crist  dude 


180  ILLUSTEATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

notliinge  to  as  but  effectuely  in  weye  of  mercy,  in  trewth 
of  ritvvesnes,  and  in  lif  of  yildying  everlastynge  joye  for 
cure  continuely  morning  and  sorwynge  in  this  valey  of 
teeres.  In  myi'aclis,  therefore,  that  Crist  dude  heere  in 
erthe,  outher  in  hyrasilf  outher  in  hise  seyntis,  weren  so 
efectuel  and  in  ernest  done,  that  to  synful  men  that 
en'en  thei  broughten  forgyvenesse  of  synne,  settynge 
hem  in  the  weye  of  right  beleve ;  to  doutouse  men  not 
stedefast,  thei  broughten  in  kunnyng  to  betere  plesen 
God  and  verry  hope  in  God  to  been  stedefast  in  hym ; 
and  to  the  wery  of  the  weye  of  God,  for  the  grette  pen- 
aunce  and  sufFraunce  of  the  trybulacioun  that  men  moten 
have  therinne,  thei  broughten  in  love  of  brynnynge  charite, 
to  the  whiche  alle  thing  is  light,  and  he  to  sufFere  dethe, 
the  whiche  men  most  dreden,  for  the  everlastynge  lyf 
and  joye  that  men  moste  loven  and  disiren,  of  the  whiche 
thing  verry  hope  puttith  awey  alle  werinesse  heere  in  the 
weye  of  God. 


24.  From  Trevisa's  Translation  of  Higden''s  PoJychroni- 
con,  Book  J.,  chap,  lix.,  as  printed  by  Tyrwlntt  in 
his  edition  of  Chaucer  s  Canterbury  Tales,  from 
MS.     ^arZ.  1900:— 1385. 

This  apayringe  {disparaging)  of  the  birthe  tongue  is 
by  cause  of  tweye  thinges :  oon  is  for  children  in  scole, 
agenes  the  usage  and  maner  of  alle  other  naciouns,  beth 
compelled  for  to  leve  her  owne  langage,  and  for  to  con- 
strewe  her  lessouns  and  her  thingis  a  Frensche,  and 
haveth  siththe  that  the  Normans  come  first  into  Eng- 
land. Also  gentil  mennes  children  beth  ytaught  for  to 
speke  Frensche  from  the  tyme  that  thei  beth  rokked  in 
her  cradel,  and  kunneth  speke  and  playe  with  a  childes 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS.  181 

brooche.  And  uplondish  men  wol  likne  hem  self  to 
gentil  men,  and  fondeth  with  grete  bisynessc  for  to  speke 
Frensche,  for  to  be  the  more  ytold  of.  —  (Trevisa.) 
This  maner  was  myche  yused  to  fore  the  first  moreyn 
{murrain,  plague),  and  is  siththe  som  del  ychaungide. 
For  John  Cornwaile,  a  maistre  of  graramer,  chaungide 
the  lore  in  grammer  scole  and  construction  of  Frensch 
into  Englisch.  and  Richard  Pencriche  lerned  that  maner 
teching  of  him,  and  other  men  of  Pencriche.  So  that 
now,  the  yere  of  our  lord  a  thousand  thre  hundred  foure 
score  and  fyve,  of  the  secund  King  Rychard  after  the 
Conquest  nyne,  in  alle  the  gramer  scoles  of  Englond 
children  leveth  Frensch,  and  construeth  and  lerneth  an 
(in)  Englisch,  and  haveth  therby  avauntage  in  oon  side 
and  desavauntage  in  another.  Her  avauntage  is,  that 
thei  lerneth  her  gramer  in  lasse  tyme  than  children 
were  wont  to  do.  Desavauntage  is,  that  now  children 
of  gramer  scole  kunneth  no  more  Frensch  that  can  her 
lifte  (Jcnows  their  left)  heele.  And  that  is  harm  for  hem, 
and  thei  schul  {cin  they  shall)  passe  the  see  and  travaile 
in  strange  londes,  and  in  many  other  places  also.  Also 
gentel  men  haveth  now  mych  ylefte  for  to  teche  her 
children  Frensch. 

{Craik.) 


25.  Beginning  of  the  Reeves  Tale,  from  Chaucer's  Can- 
terbury Tales,  after  the  Text  in  Wright's  Edition, 
lSi7:  — about  1390. 

At  Trompyngtoun,  nat  fer  i  fra  Cantebrigge, 
Ther  goth  a  brook,  and  over  that  a  brigge. 
Upon  the  whiche  brook  then  stant  a  melle ;  ^ 
And  this  is  verray  sothe  that  I  you  telle. 

1  Not  far.  2  Standi  a  mill. 


182  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

A  meller  was  ther  dwellyng  many  a  day  ; 

As  eny  pecok  he  was  prowd  and  gay  ; 

Pipen  he  coude,  and  fisshe,  and  nettys  beete,* 

And  turne  cuppes,  wrastle  wel,  and  scheete  ;  ^ 

Ay  by  his  belt  he  bar  a  long  panade,^ 

And  •*  of  a  swei'd  ful  trenchaunt  was  the  blade  ; 

A  joly  popper  ^  bar  he  in  his  pouche  ; 

Ther  was  no  man  for  perel  durst  him  touche ; 

A  Scheflfeld  thwitel  bar  he  in  his  hose ; 

Round  was  his  face,  and  camois  ®  was  his  nose  ; 

As  pyled  '^  as  an  ape  was  his  skuUe ; 

He  was  a  market-beter  *  at  the  fulle ; 

Ther  durste  no  wight  hand  upon  him  legge,® 


That  he  ne  swar  anon  he  schuld  abegge.^*' 


( Craik.) 


26.  From  the  Persones  {Parson's)  Tale  in  Chaucer's 
Canterhury  Tales,  according  to  Wrigld's  Edition:  — 
about  1390. 

A  philosopher  upon  a  tyme,  that  wolde  have  bete  his 
disciple  for  his  grete  trespas,  for  which  he  was  gretly 
amoeved,  and  brought  a  yerde  (i-od)  to  scoure  {score)  the 
child ;  and  whan  the  child  saugh  the  yerde,  he  sayde  to 
his  maister,  What  thenke  ye  to  do  ?  I  wold  bete  the, 
quod  the  maister,  for  thi  correccioun.  Forsothe,  quod 
the  child,  ye  oughte  first  correcte  youresilf,  that  ban  lost 
al  your  pacience  for  the  gilt  of  a  child.  Forsothe,  quod 
the  maister  al  wepyng,  thou  saist  soth ;  have  thou  the 
yerde,  my  deere  soue,  and  correcte  me  for  myn  impa- 
cience. 

{Craik.) 
1  Mend.  2  shoot. 

8  A  kind  of  two-edged  knife.  ■*  Should  apparently  be  As, 

5  Dagger.  6  Flat.  '  Peeled  (bald). 

8  A  swaggerer  in  the  market  ?  9  Lay.  i"  SuflFer  for. 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS-  183 

27.  The  Prayer  of  Chaucer,  ichich  concludes  the  Canter- 
bury Tales.  Wright's  Edition,  Vol.  III., pp.  188, 189. 
Now  pray  I  to  yow  all  that  heren  this  litel  tretis  or 
reden  it,  that  if  ther  be  any  thing  in  it  that  likes  hem, 
that  therof  thay  thanke  oure  Lord  Jhesu  Crist,  of  whom 
procedith  alle  witte  and  al  goodnes  ;  and  if  ther  be  any 
thing  that  displesith  hem,  I  pray  hem  that  thay  arette 
it  to  the  defaute  of  myn  unconnyng,  and  not  to  my  wille, 
that  wolde  fayn  have  sayd  better  if  I  hadde  connyng ; 
for  the  book  saith,  al  that  is  writen  for  oure  doctrine  is 
writen.  Wherefore  I  biseke  you  mekely  for  the  mercy 
of  God  that  ye  pray  for  me,  that  God  have  mercy  on  me 
and  forgive  me  my  gilte.s,  and  namliche  my  translaciouns 
and  of  endityng  in  worldly  vanitees,  Avhich  I  revoke  in 
my  retracciouns,  as  in  the  book  of  Troyles,  the  book 
also  of  Fame,  the  book  of  twenty-^ve  Ladies,  the  book 
of  the  Duchesses,  the  book  of  seint  Valentines  day  and 
of  the  Parliment  of  briddes,  the  Tales  of  Canturbury, 
alle  thilke  that  sounen  into  synne,  the  book  of  the  Leo, 
and  many  other  bokes,  if  thay  were  in  my  mynde  or 
remembrannce,  and  many  a  song  and  many  a  leccherous 
lay,  of  the  whiche  Crist  for  his  grete  mercy  forgive  me 
the  synnes.  But  if  the  translacioun  of  Boce  de  conso- 
lacioun,  and  other  bokes  of  consolacioun  and  of  legend 
of  lyves  of  seints,  and  Omelies,  and  moralities,  and 
devocioun,  that  thanke  I  oure  Lord  Jhesu  Crist,  and  his 
moder,  and  all  the  seintes  in  heven  bisekyng  hem  that 
thay  fro  hennysforth  unto  my  lyves  ende  sende  me  grace 
to  biwayle  my  gultes,  and ''to  studien  to  the  savacioun  of 
my  soule,  and  graunte  me  grace  and  space  of  verray 
repentaunce,  penitence,  confessioun,  and  satisfaccioun,  to 
don  in  this  present  lif,  thurgh  the  benigne  grace  of  him 


184  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECUrENS. 

that  is  king  of  kynges  and  prest  of  alle  prestis,  that 
bought  us  with  his  precious  blood  of  his  hert,  so  that  I 
moote  be  oon  of  hem  at  the  day  of  doom  that  schal  be 
saved ;  qui  cum  Patre  et  Spirittc  sancto  vivis  et  regnas 
Deus  per  omnia  secula.     Amen} 


28.  From  Weber's  Metrical  Romances.  The  Romance  of 
Alisaunder,  the  beginning  of  Chapter  VI.  Vol.  1., 
p.  43.     Time,  1438.     Unes  910-920. 

Clere  and  faire  the  somerys  day  spryng, 

And  makith  mony  departying 

Bytweone  knyght  and  his  swetying. 

Theo  sunne  ariseth,  and  fallith  the  dewyng ; 

Theo  nessche  clay  hit  makith  clyng, 

Mony  is  jolif  in  the  mornyng, 

And  tholeth  detl^  on  the  evenyng ! 

N'  is  in  this  world  so  siker  thyng 

So  is  deth,  to  olde  and  yyng  ! 

The  time  is  nygh  of  heore  wendyng. 

From  the  Lyfe  of  Ipomydon.      Vol.  II.     Lines  1-14. 

Mekely,  lordynges,  gentyll  and  fre, 
Lysten  awhile  and  herken  to  me : 
I  schall  you  telle  of  a  kynge, 
A  dowghty  man  withowte  lesynge  ; 
In  his  tyme  he  was  full  bolde 
A  worthy  man  and  well  of  tolde  ; 
Feyre  he  was  on  fote  and  hand, 

1  Whether  this  is  a  genuine  production  of  Chaucer,  of  which  there 
is  some  doubt,  or  of  some  priest  half  penitent  for  the  pleasure  he  had 
experienced  in  reading  this  great  author,  it  belongs  to  the  age,  and 
may  be  regarded  as  written  not  ftir  from  the  j'ear  liOO. 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECBIENS.  185 

And  well  belouyd  in  all  that  lande  ; 
Off  body  he  was  styffe  and  sti-onge, 
And  to  no  man  he  wolde  do  wronge, 
Of  Poyle-lond  lord  was  he  : 
Gold  and  sylver  he  had  plente  ; 
Hye  and  low  louyd  hym  alle  ; 
Moche  honoure  to  hym  was  falle. 


29.  From  Lydgate's  Poem  entitled  his  Testament,  accord- 
ing to  Halliwell's  Text,  1840:  —  about  1450. 

During  the  tyme  of  this  sesoun  Ver, 

I  meene  the  sesoun  of  my  yeerys  greene, 

Gynnyng  fro  childhood  stretchith  ^  up  so  fer 

To  the  yeerys  accountyd  ful  fifteene, 

B'  experience,  as  it  was  weel  seene, 

The  gerisshe  sesoun  straunge  of  condiciouns 

Dispoosyd  to  many  unbridlyd  passiouns  ; 

Voyd  of  resoun,  yove  to  wilfulnesse, 
Froward  to  vertu,  of  thrift  gafe  litil  heede, 
Loth  to  lerne,  lovid  no  besynesse 
Sauf  pley  or  merthe,  straunge  to  spelle  or  reede, 
Folwyng  al  appetites  longyng  to  childheede, 
Lihtly  tournyng,  wylde  and  seelde  sad, 
Weepyng  for  nouhte  and  anoon  afftir  glad. 

For  litil  wroth  to  stryve  with  ray  felawe, 
As  my  passiouns  did  my  bridil  leede. 
Of  the  yeerde  somtyme  I  stood  in  awe ; 


1  This  is  the  reading  in  MS.  Earl  2255,/o?.  60.    In  MS.  Earl.  218, 
fol.  66,  it  is  stretched. 


186  ILLUSTPwVTIVE  Sl'ECDIEXS. 

To  be  scooryd  that  was  al  my  dreede ;  — 
Loth  toward  scole,  lost  my  tyme  indeede, 
Lik  a  young  colt  that  ran  withowte  brydil, 
Made  my  freendys  ther  good  to  spend  in  ydil. 
I  hadde  in  custom  to  come  to  scole  late, 
Nat  fov  to  lerne,  but  for  a  contenaunce  ;  ^ 
With  my  felawys  reedy  to  debate, 
In  jangle  and  jape  ^  was  set  al  my  pleasaunce ; 
Wherof  rebuked  this  was  my  chevisaunce,^ 
To  forge  a  lesyng*  and  therupon  to  muse, 
Whan  I  trespasyd  mysilven  to  excuse. 

To  my  bettre  did  no  reverence, 

Of  my  sovereyns  gaf  no  fors  at  al,^ 

Wex  obstynat  by  inobedience, 

Ran  into  gardyns,  applys  ther  I  stal ; 

To  gadre  frutys  sparyd  hegg  nor  wal ; 

To  plukke  grapys  in  othir  mennys  vynes. 

Was  moor  reedy  than  for  to  seyn  matynes. 

(Craik.) 

30.  From  the  Paston  Letters  written  during  the  reigns  of 
Henry  VI.,  Edward  IV.,  and  Richard  III.  By 
John  Fenn.  Ramsay's  Edition,  London,  1849. 
Portion  of  a  letter  of  Richard  Calle  to  his  betroth- 
ed mistress  Margery  Paston.  1469  —  (Spelling 
modernized). 

Mine  own  lady  and  mistress,  and  before  God  very  true 
wife,  1  with  heart  full  sorrowful  recommend  me  unto 
you,  as  he  that  cannot  be  merry,  nor  nought  shall  be  till 

1  Appearance.         2  Trick,  jest.  3  Contrivance.         *  Lie. 

5  This  line  seems  to  be  corrupted.  Perhaps  sovereyns  should  be 
sufferance. 


ILLUSTKATIYE  SPECDIENS.  187 

it  be  otlienvise  with  us  than  it  is  yet,  for  this  life  that  we 
lead  now  is  neither  pleasure  to  God  nor  to  the  world, 
considering  the  great  bond  of  matrimony  that  is  made 
betwixt  us,  and  also  the  great  love  that  hath  been  and 
as  I  trust  yet  is  betwixt  us,  and  as  on  my  part  never 
greater  ;  wherefore  I  beseech  Almighty  God  comfort  us 
as  soon  as  it  pleaseth  him,  for  we  that  ought  of  very 
right  to  be  most  together  are  most  asunder,  meseemeth 
it  is  a  thousand  year  ago  since  that  I  spake  with  you, 
I  had  lever  (rather)  than  all  the  good  in  the  world  I 
might  be  with  you ;  alas,  alas !  good  lady,  full  little  re- 
member they  what  they  do  that  keep  us  thus  asunder, 
four  times  in  the  year  are  they  accursed  that  hinder 
matrimony ;  it  causeth  many  men  to  deem  in  them  they 
have  large  conscience  in  other  matters  as  well  as  herein  ; 
but  what  lady  suffer  as  ye  have  done  ;  and  make  you 
merry  as  ye  can,  for  I  wis,  lady  at  the  long  way,  God 
will  of  his  righteousness  help  his  servants  that  mean 
truly,  and  would  live  according  to  his  laws,  &c. 

I  understand,  lady,  ye  have  had  as  much  sorrow  for 
me  as  any  gentlewoman  hath  had  in  the  world,  as  would 
God  all  that  sorrow  that  ye  have  rested  upon  me  and 
that  ye  had  been  discharged  of  it,  for  I  wis,  lady,  it  is 
to  me  a  death  to  hear  that  ye  be  entreated  otherwise 
than  ye  ought  to  be  ;  this  is  a  painful  life  that  we  lead,  I 
can  not  live  thus  without  it  be  a  displeasure  to  God.  .  .  . 


31.    Conclusion  of  OaxtorCs  English  Translation  of  Hig- 
den's  Polychronicon  :  —  1482. 

And  here  I  make  an  ende  of  this  lytel  werke  as  nygh 
as  I  can  fjnde  after  the  forme  of  the  werk  to  fore  made 
by  Ranulph  monk  of  Chestre.     And   where  as  ther  is 


188  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

fawte,  I  beseche  them  that  shal  rede  it  to  correcte  it. 
For  yf  I  coude  have  foundeii  moo  storyes  I  wold  have 
sette  in  hit  moo  ;  but  the  substaunce  that  I  can  fynde 
and  knowe  I  have  shortly  sette  hem  in  this  book,  to 
thentente  that  such  thynges  as  have  ben  done  syth  the 
deth  or  ende  of  the  sayd  boke  of  Polycronycon  shold  be 
had  in  remembraiince  and  not  putte  in  oblyvyon  ne  for- 
getynge  ;  prayenge  all  them  that  shall  see  this  symple 
werke  to  pardone  me  of  my  symple  and  rude  wrytynge. 
Ended  the  second  day  of  Juyll  the  xxii  yere  of  the  regne 
of  Kynge  Edward  the  Fourth,  and  of  the  Incarnacion  of 
oure  Lord  a  thousand  four  honderd  foure  score  and 
tweyne. 

Fynysshed  per  Caxton.  (Craik.) 


32.  Char  acte?-  of  Hi  chard  the  Third,  by  Sir  Tliomas  More. 
From  Holinshed's  Chronicles,  Vol.  111.,  Uo.,  Lon- 
don, 1808,  p.  3G2.  From  the  Life  of  Edward  the 
Fifth.      Written  1513,  Printed  1586. 

Richard  the  third  sonne,  of  whome  we  now  intreat, 
was  in  wit  and  courage  equal!  with  either  of  them,  in 
bodie  and  prowesse  farre  vnder  them  both,  litle  of 
stature,  ill  featured  of  limmes,  crooke  backed,  his  left 
shoulder  much  higher  than  his  right,  hard  fauored  of 
visage,  and  such  as  is  in  states  called  warlie,  in  other 
men  otherwise ;  he  was  malicious,  wrathfull,  enuious, 
and  from  afore  his  birth  euer  froward.  It  is  for  truth 
reported,  that  the  duchesse  his  mother  had  so  much  adoo 
in  hir  trauell,  that  she  could  not  be  delivered  of  him 
vncut ;  and  that  he  came  into  the  world  with  the  feet 
forward,  as  men  be  borne  outward,  and  (as  the  same 
runneth    also)    not    vntoothed,  whether   men    of  hatred 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS.  189 

report  aboue  the  truth,  or  else  that  nature  changed  hir 
course  in  his  beginning,  which  in  the  course  of  his  life 
manie  things  vnnaturalie  committed.  So  that  the  full 
confluence  of  these  qualities,  with  the  defects  of  fauour 
and  amiable  proportion,  gave  proof  to  this  rule  of  physi- 
ognomie. 

Distortum  vultum  sequitur  distorsio  morum. 

None  euill  capteine  was  he  in  warre,  as  to  which  his 
disposition  was  more  meetly  than  for  peace.  Sundrie 
victories  had  he  and  sometimes  ouerthrowes  ;  but  neuer 
on  default  as  for  his  owne  person,  either  of  hardiesse  or 
politike  order.  Free  was  he  called  of  dispense,  and 
somewhat  aboue  his  power  liberall ;  with  large  gifts  he 
gat  him  vnstedfast  friendship,  for  which  he  was  faine  to 
pill  and  spoile  in  other  places,  and  gat  him  stedfast 
hatred.  He  was  close  and  secret,  a  deepe  dissembler, 
lowlie  of  countenance,  arrogant  of  heart,  outwardlie 
companiable  where  he  inwardlie  hated,  not  letting  to 
kisse  whome  he  thought  to  kill ;  despitious  and  cruell, 
not  for  euill  will  alway,  but  often  for  ambition,  and  either 
for  the  suretie  or  increase  of  his  estate. 


33.  From  the  Prologue  of  Froissart.  Lord  Berners^ 
Translation  Reprinted  from  Pynson's  Edition., 
0/1523  and  1525.     2  vols.  Ato.     London,  1812. 

To  thentent  that  the  honorable  and  noble  aventures 
of  featis  of  armes  done  and  achyued  by  y^  warres  of 
Frace  and  Inglande  shulde  notably  be  inregistered  and 
put  in  perpetuall  memory,  whereby  the  prewe  and  har- 
dy may  have  ensample  to  incourage  them  in  theyr  well 
doyng,  I  syr  John  Froissart,  wyll  treat  and  recorde  an 
hystory  of  great  louage  and  preyse  but,  or  I  begyn,  I  re- 
12 


190  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

quire  the  sauyour  of  all  the  worlde,  who  of  nothyng 
created  al  thynges,  that  he  wyll  gyue  me  such  grace 
and  vuderstandynge,  that  I  may  cotinue  and  perseuer 
in  such  wyse,  that  whoso  this  proces  redeth  or  hereth, 
may  take  pastauce,  pleasure,  and  ensample.  It  is  sayd 
of  trouth,  that  al  buyklynges  are  masoned  and  wroughte 
of  dyuerse  stones,  and  all  great  ryuers  are  gurged  and  as- 
semblede  of  diuers  surges  and  sprynges  of  water ;  in 
lykewyse  all  sciences  are  extraught  and  compiled  of  di- 
uerse  clerkes  of  that  one  wryteth,  another,  paraventure, 
is  ignorant ;  but  by  the  fi^mous  wryting  of  auncient  auc- 
tours,  all  thyngis  ben  knowen  in  one  place  or  other. 
Than  to  attaygne  to  the  mater  that  I  have  entreprised, 
I  wyll  begyn. 

Fyrst,  by  the  grace  of  God  and  of  the  blessed  Virgyn, 
our  Lady  Saynt  Mary,  from  whom  all  comfort  and  con- 
solation procedeth,  and  wyll  take  my  foundation  out  of  y*" 
true  cronicles  somtyme  copyled  by  the  right  reuerend 
discrete,  and  sage  maister,  John  la  Bele,  sometyrae 
chanon  in  Saint  Lambartis,  of  Liege,  who  with  good 
herte  and  due  diligence  dyd  his  true  deuore  in  wrytyng 
this  noble  cronicle,  and  dyd  contynue  it  all  his  lyfes 
dayes,  in  followyng  the  trouth  as  nere  as  he  myght,  to 
his  great  charge  and  coste  in  sekyng  to  haue  the  per- 
fyght  knowledge  therof. 


34.  A  Letter  ivritten  by  Sir  Thomas  More  to  his  Wife 
after  the  Burning  of  his  House  at  Chelsea,  from  his 
"  Works,"  by  Rastell,  1557:  —  1528. 

Maistres  Alyce,  In  my  most  harty  wise  I  recommend 
me  to  you ;  and,  whereas  I  am  enfourmed  by  my  son 
Heron  \_Jerome'\  of  the  losse  of  our  barnes  and  of  our 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS.  191 

neighbours  also,  with  all  the  corn  that  was  therein,  albeit 
(saving  God's  pleasure)  it  is  gret  pitie  of  so  much  good 
corne  lost,  yet,  sith  it  hath  liked  hym  to  sende  us  such  a 
chaunce,  we  must  and  are  bounden,  not  only  to  be  con- 
tent, but  also  to  be  glad  of  his  visitacion.  He  sente  us  all 
that  we  have  loste ;  and,  sith  he  hath  by  such  a  chaunce 
taken  it  away  againe,  his  pleasure  be  fulfilled.  Let  us 
never  grudge  ther  at,  but  take  it  in  good  worth,  and 
hartely  thank  him,  as  well  for  adversetie  as  for  prosper- 
itie.  And  peradventure  we  have  more  cause  to  thank 
him  for  our  losse  then  for  our  winning  ;  for  his  Avisdorae 
better  seeth  what  is  good  for  us  then  we  do  our  selves. 
Therfore  I  pray  you  be  of  good  chere,  and  take  all  the 
howshold  with  you  to  church,  and  there  thanke  God,  both 
for  that  he  hath  given  us,  and  for  that  he  hath  taken  from 
us,  and  for  that  he  hath  left  us,  which,  if  it  please  hym,  he 
can  encrease  when  he  will.  And,  if  it  please  hym  to 
leave  us  yet  lesse,  at  his  pleasure  be  it. 

I  pray  you  to  make  some  good  ensearche  what  my 
poore  neighbours  have  lost,  and  bid  them  take  no  thought 
therfore  ;  for,  and  I  shold  not  leave  myself  a  spone,  there 
shal  no  pore  neighbour  of  mine  here  no  losse  by  any 
chaunce  happened  in  my  house.  I  pray  you  be,  with 
my  children  and  your  household,  merry  in  God.  And 
devise  some  what  with  your  frendes,  what  waye  wer  best 
to  take  for  provision  to  be  made  for  corne  for  our  house- 
hold, and  for  sede  thys  yere  coraming,  if  ye  thinke  it  good 
that  we  kepe  the  ground  stil  in  our  handes.  And,  whether 
ye  think  it  good  that  we  so  shall  do  or  not,  yet  I  think 
it  were  not  best  sodenlye  thus  to  leave  it  all  up,  and  to 
put  away  our  folk  of  our  farme  till  we  have  somwhat 
advised  us  thereon.  How  beit,  if  we  have  more  nowe 
then  ye  shall  nede,  and  which  can  get  them  other  mais- 


192  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIilENS. 

ters,  ye  may  tlien  discharge  us  of  them.  But  I  would 
not  that  any  man  were  sodenly  sent  away  he  wote  nere 
wether.  .  .  . 

(  Craik.) 


35.  Beginning  of  TyndaVs  translation  of  the  \(jth  Chap- 
ter of  St.  Luke,  from  the  second  edition  of  his  New 
Testament  (as  rejninted  in  the  "  English  Hexapla" 
1841)  ;  with  the  Variations,  included  ivithin  brack- 
ets, of  the  passage  as  given  in  his  Treatise  entitled 
«  The  Parable  of  the  Wicked  Mammon  ; "  —  1534 
and  1536. 

And  he  sayd  also  unto  his  disciples,  Ther  was  a  cer- 
tayne  rych  [certain  riche]  man,  which  [the  whiche]  had 
a  stewarde  [steward]  that  was  acused  [y'  was  accused] 
unto  him  that  [hym  y']  he  had  wasted  his  goodes  [goods]. 
And  he  called  him,  and  sayd  unto  him,  How  is  it  that  I 
heare  [hear]  thys  of  the  ?  Give  a  coniptes  [accomptes] 
of  thy  steward  shippe  [steward  shypp],  for  thou  mayste 
[maiest]  be  no  longer  [my]  stewarde.  The  stewarde 
[steward]  sayd  with  in  [within]  him  selfe,  What  shall  I 
do  [shal  I  doo]  ?  for  my  master  will  [wil]  take  awaye 
[away]  from  me  the  stewarde  shippe  [my  stewardshypp]. 
I  cannot  digge  [dygge],  and  to  begge  I  am  a  shamed 
[ashamed].  Iwoote  [wot]  what  to  do,  that  when  [whan] 
I  am  put  out  of  the  stewardshippe  [my  stewardship], 
they  may  receave  [receyve]  me  into  their  houses.  Then 
called  he  all  [al]  his  master's  detters,  and  sayd  [said] 
unto  the  fyrst  [firste].  How  moche  [muche]  owest  thou 
unto  my  master  ?  And  he  sayd  [said],  An  hondred  [an 
c]  tonnes  of  oyle  [oile].  And  he  sayd  to  [said  unto] 
him,  Take  thy  bill  [byl],  and  syt  donne  [sit  down]  quick- 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS.  193 

ly,  and  wryte  fiftie  [write  I.']  Tlien  sayd  he  to  another, 
What  owest  thou  ?  And  he  sayde  [sayd],  An  hondred 
[an  c]  quarters  of  wheate  [wheat].  He  sayd  to  him 
[said  unto  hyra],  Take  thy  bill  [byl]  and  write  foure 
scoore  [Ixxx.'].  And  the  lorde  [lord]  commended  the 
unjust  stewarde  [steward],  because  he  had  done  wysly 
[don  wisely].  For  the  chyldren  [children]  of  this 
worlde  [thys  world]  are  in  their  kynde  wyser  [kind 
wiser]  then  the  chyldren  [children]  of  lyght  [light.] 
And  I  saye  [say]  also  unto  you,  make  you  frendes 
[frindes]  of  the  wiked  Mammon,  that,  whan  ye  shall 
departe  [shall  have  nede],  they  may  receave  [receyve] 
you  into  everlastinge  [in  everlasting]  habitacions. 

(Craik.) 

36.  Beginning  of  the  KSth  Chapter  of  St.  Luhe^from  the 
Version  in  what  is  called  Cranmer's  Bible   (as  re- 
printed in  the  '■'■English  Hexapla"  1841)  : —  1539. 

And  he  sayd  also  unto  his  discyples.  Ther  was  a  cer- 
tayn  ryche  man,  whych  had  a  stewarde,  and  the  same 
was  accused  unto  hym,  that  he  had  wasted  liys  goodes. 
And  he  called  hym,  and  sayd  unto  hym :  How  is  it  that 
I  heare  this  of  the  ?  Geve  accomptes  of  thy  steward- 
shyp :  For  thou  mayste  be  no  longer  stewarde.  The 
stewarde  sayde  within  hym  selfe :  what  shall  I  do  ? 
for  my  Master  taketh  awaye  from  me  the  stewarde- 
shyppe.  I  can  not  dygge,  and  to  begge  I  am  asham- 
ed. I  wote  what  to  do,  that  when  I  am  put  out  of  the 
stewardship,  they  may  receive  me  into  their  houses. 

So  whan  he  had  called  all  hys  masters  detters  together, 
he  sayd  unto  the  first:  how  moch  owest  thou  unto  my 
master  ?  And  he  sayd :  an  hondred  tonnes  of  oyle. 
And  he  sayd   unto  hym :  take  thy  byll,  and  syt  doune 


194  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

quyckly  and  wryte  fyfiye.  Then  sayd  he  to  another : 
how  moch  owest  thou?  And  he  sayde:  an  hondred 
quarters  of  wheate.  lie  sayd  unto  hyra  :  Take  thy 
byll,  and  wryte  foure  scoore.  And  the  lorde  commend- 
ed the  unjust  stewarde,  because  he  had  done  wysly. 
For  the  chyldren  of  thys  worlde  are  in  their  nacyon, 
wyser  then  the  chyldren  of  iyght.  And  I  saye  unto 
you  :  make  you  frendes  of  tlie  unryghteous  mammon, 
that  when  ye  shal  have  nede,  they  may  receave  you 
into  everlastynge  habitacyons. 

( Craik.) 


37.  Sonnet  hy  Henry  Hoivcwd,  Earl  of  Surrey :  —  about 
1545. 

The  soote^  season,  that  bud  and  bloom  forth  brings, 

With  green  hath  clad  the  hill  and  eke  the  vale ; 
The  nightingale  with  feathers  new  she  sings  ; 

The  turtle  to  her  make  '^  hath  told  her  tale  ; 
Summer  is  come,  for  every  spray  now  springs ; 

The  hart  hath  hung  his  old  head  on  the  pale ; 
The  buck  in  brake  his  winter-coat  he  flings ; 

The  fishes  fleet  with  new-repaired  scale ; 
The  adder  all  her  slough  away  she  flings ; 

The  swift  swallow  pursueth  the  flies  smale;^ 
The  busy  bee  her  honey  now  she  mings ;  ^ 

Winter  is  worn  that  was  the  flowers  bale  ; 
And  thus  I  see  among  these  pleasant  things 

Each  care  decays,  and  yet  my  sorrow  springs ! 

( Craik.) 
The  spelling  is  modernized  in  this  specimen. 

1  Sweet.  2  Mate.  3  Small.  *■  Rlingles. 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS.  195 


V.  MODERN  ENGLISH:  — From  a.  d.  1550. 

38.  Beginning  of  the  IGth  Chapter  of  St.  Luke,  from  the 
Version  in  the  Geneva  New  Testament  (as  reprinted 
in  the  '■^English  Hexapla"  1841)  :  —  1557. 

And  he  sayd  also  unto  his  disciples,  There  was  a  cer- 
tain riehe  man,  which  had  a  stewarde,  and  he  was  accus- 
ed unto  him,  that  he  wasted  his  goodes.  And  he  called 
hym,  and  said  unto  him,  How  is  it  that  I  heare  this  of 
thee  ?  Geve  acountes  of  thy  stewardeshyp  :  for  thou 
mayst  be  no  longer  stewarde.  The  stewarde  sayd  within 
him  self,  What  shal  I  do,  for  my  master  wyl  take  away 
from  me  the  stewardshyp?  I  can  not  dygge,  and  to  begge 
I  am  ashamed.  I  wot  what  to  do,  that  when  I  am  put 
out  of  the  stewardshyp  they  may  receave  me  into  their 
houses. 

Then  called  he  all  his  masters  detters,  and  sayd  unto 
the  fyrst.  How  muche  owest  thow  unto  my  master?  And 
he  sayd.  An  hundred  mesures  of  oyle,  and  he  saved  to 
him.  Take  thy  obligation,  and  syt  downe  quickly,  and 
wryte  fyfty.  Then  sayed  he  to  another.  How  muche 
owest  thou  ?  and  he  sayd.  An  hundred  mesures  of  wheat, 
then  he  sayd  to  him.  Take  thyne  obligation,  and  wryte 
foure  score.  And  the  Lord  commended  the  unjust  stew- 
arde, because  he  had  done  wysely.  Wherfore  the  chyl- 
dren  of  this  worlde  are  in  their  kynde  wyser  then  the 
chyldren  of  light.  And  I  say  unto  you,  Make  you 
friendes  with  the  riches  of  iniquitie,  that  when  ye  shal 
departe,  they  may  receave  you  into  everlasting  habita- 
tions. 

( Craik.) 


196  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

39.    Commencement  of  Sachnlle's  Induction  to  the  Third 
Part  of  "  Tlie  Mirror  for  Magistrates :" —  lo59. 

The  wrathfull  winter,  proching  ^  on  apace, 
With  blustering  blasts  had  all  ybarde  the  treen,^ 
And  old  Saturnu.>,  with  his  frosty  face. 
With  chilling  cold  had  pearst  the  tender  greene ; 
The  mantles  rent,  wherein  enwrapped  beene 
The  gladsom  groviis  that  now  lay  ouerthrowne. 
The  tapets  ^  torne  and  every  blonie  downe  blowne. 

The  soyle,  that  erst  so  seemly  was  to  seene, 

Was  all  despoyled  of  her  beauties  hewe ; 

And  soote-fresh  flowers,  wherewith  the  sommers  queene 

Had  clad  the  earth,  now  Boreas  blasts  downe  blewe; 

And  small  foules,  flocking,  in  theyr  song  did  rewe 

The  winters  wrath,  whPi-ewith  ech  thing  defaste 

In  woefull  wise  bewayld  the  sommer  past. 

( Craik.) 


40.  From  Ascham^s  "  Schoolmaster :"  —  about  1563. 

Quick  wits  commonly  be  apt  to  take,  unapt  to  keep ; 
soon  hot,  and  desirous  of  this  and  that ;  as  cold  and  soon 
weary  [as  soon  cold  and  weary  ?]  of  the  same  again ; 
more  quick  to  enter  speedily  than  able  to  pierce  far ; 
even  like  over-sharp  tools,  whose  edges  be  very  soon 
turned.  Such  wits  delight  themselves  in  easy  and  pleas- 
ant studies,  and  never  pass  far  forward  in  high  and  hard 
sciences.  And  therefore  the  quickest  wits  commonly 
may  prove  the  best  poets,  but  not  the  wisest  orators ; 
ready  of  tongue  to  speak  boldly,  not  deep  of  judgment 

1  Approaching.  -  Bared  the  trees.  8  Hangings,  leaves. 


ILLUSTRAXrV^E  SPECDIEXS.  197 

either  for  good  counsel  or  wise  writing.  Also  for  man- 
ners and  life,  quick  wits  commonly  be  in  desire  new- 
fangled ;  in  purpose  unconstant ;  light  to  promise  any 
thing ;  ready  to  forget  every  thing,  both  benefit  and 
injury ;  and  thereby  neither  fast  to  friend  nor  fearful  to 
foe  ;  inquisitive  of  every  trifle ;  not  secret  in  the  greatest 
affairs ;  bold  with  any  person ;  busy  in  every  matter  ; 
soothing  such  as  be  present ;  nipping  any  that  is  absent ; 
of  nature,  also,  always  flattering  their  betters,  envying 
their  equals,  despising  their  inferiors ;  and,  by  quickness 
of  wit,  very   quick  and    ready  to  like  none  so  well  as 

themselves. 

(CralJc.) 
The  spelling  is  modernized  in  tliis  specimen. 


•ill.  From  the  '■^  Schole  Master"  Roger  Ascham  :  —  Re- 
printed in  4ito.  London,  17G1.  pp.  243,  244. 
1571. 

Take  hede  therefox-e,  ye  great  ones  in  the  court,  yea 
though  ye  be  the  greatest  of  all,  take  hede  what  ye  do ; 
take  heed  how  ye  live :  for  as  you  great  ones  use  to  do, 
so  all  meane  men  love  to  do.  You  be  indeed  makers  or 
marrers,  of  all  mens  maners  within  the  realnie.  For 
though  God  hath  placecf  you  to  be  chief  in  making  of 
lawes,  to  beare  greatest  authoritee,  to  commend  all 
others ;  yet  God  doth  order  that  all  your  lawes,  all  your 
authority,  all  your  comraandmentes,  do  not  half  so  moch 
with  meane  men,  as  doth  your  example  and  maner  of 
living.  And  for  example,  even  in  the  greatest  matter,  if 
you  yourselves  do  serve  God  gladlie  and  orderlie  for  con- 
science sake,  not  coldlie,  and  somtyme  for  maner  sake, 
you  carie  all  the  court  with  you,  and  the  whole  realm 
beside,  earnesthe  and  orderlie  to  do  the  same.     If  you  do 


198  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECLMEXS. 

Otherwise,  you  1)e  the  onlie  autlior.s  of  all  misorders  in 
religion,  not  onlie  to  the  courto,  but  to  all  Englande  be- 
side. Infinite  shall  be  made  cold  in  religion  by  your  ex- 
ample, that  never  were  hurt  by  i-eading  of  books.  .  .   . 

What  praise  shold'  they  wynne  to  themselves,  what 
commoditie  shold  they  bring  to  their  contrie,  that  would 
thus  deserve  to  be  pointed  at ;  "  Behold  there  goeth  the 
author  of  good  order,  the  guide  of  good  men"  ?  I  could 
say  more,  and  yet  not  over  moch.  But  perchance  some 
will  say,  I  have  stepte  to  farre  out  of  my  schole  into  the 
commonwelthe. 


42.  From  Sir  Philip  Sidney's  "  Apologie  for  Poefrie  :"— 
about  1580. 

The  Philosopher,  therefore,  and  the  Historian  are  they 
which  would  win  the  gole  ;  the  one  by  precept,  the  other 
by  example.  But  both,  not  having  both,  do  both  halte. 
For  the  Philosopher,  setting  downe  with  thorny  argument 
the  bare  rule,  is  so  hard  of  utterance,  and  so  mistie  to  bee 
conceived,  that  one  that  hath  no  other  guide  but  him  shall 
wade  in  him  till  hee  be  olde  before  he  shall  finde  sufficient 
cause  to  bee  honest :  for  his  knowledge  standeth  so  upon 
the  abstract  and  general],  thaf  happie  is  that  man  who 
may  under.-tande  him,  and  more  happie  that  can  applye 
what  hee  dooth  understand.  On  the  other  side,  the  His- 
torian, wanting  the  precept,  is  so  tyed,  not  to  what  shoulde 
bee,  but  to  what  is,  to  the  particuler  truth  of  things,  and 
not  to  the  generall  reason  of  things,  that  hys  example 
draweth  no  necessary  consequence,  and  therefore  a  lesse 
fruitful  doctrine. 

Now  dooth  the  peereless  Poet  perfoniie  both ;  for, 
whatsoever  the  philosopher  sayth  should  be  doone,  hee 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS.  199 

giveth  a  perfect  picture  of  it  in  some  one  by  whom  bee 
presupposetb  it  was  doone  ;  so  as  be  coupletb  the  generall 
notion  witb  tbe  particuler  example.  A  perfect  picture, 
I  say ;  for  he  yeeldetb  to  tbe  powers  of  tbe  minde  an 
image  of  that  whereof  tlie  Philosopher  bestowetb  but  a 
woordisb  description,  which  dooth  neyther  strike,  pierce, 
nor  possesse  the  sight  of  the  soule  so  much  as  that  other 
dooth.  For  as,  in  outward  things,  to  a  man  that  had 
never  seene  an  elephant  or  a  rinoceros,  who  should  tell 
him  most  exquisitely  all  theyr  shapes,  cullour,  bignesse, 
and  particular  markes,  or,  of  a  gorgeous  pallace  tbe  archi- 
tecture, with  declaring  the  full  beauties  might  well  make 
tbe  bearer  able  to  repeate,  as  it  were,  by  rote  all  bee  bad 
heard,  yet  should  never  satisfie  bis  inward  conceit  with 
being  witnes  to  it  selfe  of  a  truly  lively  knowledge  ;  but 
tbe  same  man,  as  soone  as  hee  might  see  those  beasts 
well  painted,  or  tbe  house  wel  in  model),  should  straight- 
waies  grow,  without  need  of  any  discription,  to  a  judiciall 
comprehending  of  them ;  so  no  doubt  the  philosopher, 
with  his  learned  definition,  bee  it  of  virtue,  vices,  matters 
of  publick  policie,  or  privat  government,  replenishetb  the 
memory  with  many  infallible  grounds  of  wisdom ;  which, 
notwithstanding,  lye  darke  before  the  imaginative  and 
judging  powre,  if  they  bee  not  illuminated  or  figured 

foortb  by  tbe  speaking  picture  of  Poesie. 

{Craih.) 


43.  Beginning  of  the  1  Gth  Chapter  of  St.  Luhe,  from 
the  version  in  the  Rheims  Neio  Testament  (as  re- 
printed in  the  "  English  Hexapla  ")  ; — 1582. 

And  be  said  also  to  his  Disciples,  There  was  a  certaine 
riche  man  that  bad  a  bailife  :  and  he  was  il  reported  of 


200  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

unto  him,  as  he  that  had  wasted  his  goods.  And  he 
called  him,  and  said  to  him,  What  heare  I  this  of  thee  ? 
render  account  of  thy  baihship :  for  now  thou  canst  no 
more  be  bailife.  And  the  baiUfe  said  within  him  self, 
What  shal  I  doe,  because  my  lord  taketh  away  from  me 
the  bailiship  ?  digge  I  am  not  able,  to  begge  I  am 
ashamed.  I  know  what  I  wil  doe,  that  when  I  shal  be 
removed  from  the  bailiship,  they  may  receive  me  into 
their  houses.  Therefore  calling  together  every  one  of 
his  lords  detters,  he  said  to  the  first,  How  much  doest 
thou  owe  my  lord  ?  But  he  saith,  An  hundred  pipes  of 
oile.  And  he  said  to  him,  Take  thy  bil :  and  sit  downe, 
quickly  write  fiftie.  After  that  he  said  to  an  other.  But 
thou,  how  much  doest  thou  owe  ?  Who  said.  An  hun- 
dretli  quarters  of  wheat.  He  said  to  him.  Take  thy 
bil,  and  write  eightie.  And  the  lord  praised  the  bailife 
of  iniquitie,  because  he  had  done  wisely  :  for  the  children 
of  this  world,  are  wiser  then  the  children  of  light  in  their 
generation.  And  I  say  to  you,  Make  unto  you  frendes 
of  the  mammon  of  iniquitie  :  that  when  you  faile,  they 
may  receive  you  into  the  eternal  tabernacles. 

( Craik.) 


44.  From  a  Discourse  of  English  Poetrie  hy  William 
Webbe,  London,  1586,  Reprinted  in  "  Ancient  Criti- 
cal Essays  "  by  Joseph  Haslewood,  London,  1815. 
Vol  11.  pp.  32,  33. 

The  first  of  our  English  Poets  that  I  have  heard  of, 
was  lohn  Gower,  about  the  time  of  King  Rychard  the 
seconde,  as  it  should  seeme  by  certayne  coniectures  bothe 
a  Knight,  and  questionlesse  a  singuler  well  learned  man ; 
whose  workes  I  could  wysh  they  were  all  whole  and  per- 


ILLUSTRATRT];  SPECIMEN'S.  201 

feet  among  us,  for  no  doubt  they  contained  very  much 
deepe  knowledge  and  delight ;  which  may  be  gathered  by 
his  freend  Chawcer,  who  speaketh  of  him  oftentimes  in 
diuer  places  of  hys  workes.  Chawcer,  who  for  that  ex- 
cellent fame  which  hee  obtayned  in  his  Poetry,  was 
always  accounted  the  God  of  English  Poets  (such  a 
tytle  for  honours  sake  hath  beene  given  him)  was  next 
after,  if  not  equall  in  time  to  Gower ;  and  hath  left  many 
workes,  both  for  delight  and  profitable  knowledge,  farre 
exceeding  any  other  that  as  yet  euer  since  hys  time  di- 
rected theyr  studies  that  way.  Though  the  manner  of 
his  stile  may  seeme  blunt  and  course  to  many  fine  Eng- 
lish eares  at  these  dayes,  yet  in  truth,  if,  it  be  equally 
pondered,  and  with  good  iudgment  aduised,  and  confirmed 
with  the  time  wherein  he  wrote,  a  man  shall  perceive 
thereby  euen  a  true  picture,  a  perfect  shape  of  a  right 
Poet.  He  by  his  delightsome  vayne,  so  gulled  the  eares 
of  men  with  his  deuises,  that,  although  corruption  bear 
such  sway  in  most  matters,  that  learning  and  truth  might 
skant  bee  admitted  to  shewe  itself,  yet  without  controll- 
ment,  myght  hee  gyrde  at  the  vices  and  abuses  of  all 
states,  and  gawle  with  very  sharpe  and  eger  inventions, 
which  he  did  so  learnedly  and  pleasantly,  that  none  there- 
fore would  call  him  into  question.  For  such  was  his  bolde 
spyrit,  that  what  enormities  he  saw  in  any,  he  would  not 
spare  to  pay  them  home,  eyther  in  playne  words  or  els  in 
some  prety  and  pleasaunt  couert,  that  the  simplest  might 
espy  him. 


202  ELLUSTRATIV^E  SPECIMENS. 

45.  The  Reply  of  Belphoehe  to  Braggadocio,  in  the  Third 
Canto  of  the  Second  Book  of  Spenser's  "  Faerie 
Queene  :  "  —  about  1590. 

"  Whoso  in  pompe  of  prowd  estate,"  quoth  she, 

"  Does  swim,  ami  bathes  himselfe  in  courtly  blis, 

Does  waste  his  daies  in  dark  obscuritee, 

And  in  oblivion  ever  buried  is  : 

"Where  ease  abownds  yt's  eath  ^  to  do  amis : 

But  who  his  limbs  with  labours,  and  his  mynd 

Behaves  ^  with  cares,  cannot  so  easy  mis. 

Abroad  in  armes,  at  home  in  studious  kynd, 

Who  seekes  with  painfull  toile  shall  Honor  soonest  fynd. 

"  In  woods,  in  waves,  in  warres  she  wonts  to  dwell, 

And  wil  be  found  with  perill  and  with  paine  ; 

Ne  can  the  man  that  moulds  in  ydle  cell 

Unto  her  hai^py  mansion  attaine  ; 

Before  her  gate  High  God  did  Sweate  ordaine 

And  wakefuU  Watches  ever  to  abide  : 

But  easy  is  the  way  and  passage  plaine 

To  Pleasures  pallace :  it  may  soone  be  spide. 

And  day  and  night  her  dores  to  all  stand  open  wide." 

( Craik.) 


46.  From  an  Apologie  of  Poetrie  hy  Sir  John  Haring- 
ton,  1591.  —  Reprinted  by  Haslewood,  Essays,  Vol. 
11.  p.  142. 

Sir  Thomas  Moore  a  man  of  great   wisdome  &  learn- 
ing, but  yet  a  little  enclined  (as  good  wits  are  many  times) 
to  scoffing,  Avhen  one  had  brought   him  a  booke  of  some 
shallow  discourse,  aiid  preassed  him  very  hard  to  have 
1  Easy.  2  Employs,  occupies. 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECDIENS.  203 

his  opinion  of  it,  aduised  the  partie  to  put  it  into  verse ; 
the  pUiine  meaning  man  in  the  best  maner  he  could  did 
so,  and  a  twelve-month  after  at  the  least,  came  with  it  to 
Sir  Thomas,  who  slightly  perusing  it,  gave  it  this  enco- 
miu,  that  now  there  was  rime  in  it,  but  afore  it  had  neither 
rime  nor  reason.  If  any  ma  had  nient  to  serve  me  so, 
yet  I  haue  preuented  him  ;  for  sure  I  am  he  shall  find 
rime  in  mine,  and  if  he  be  not  voyd  of  reason,  he  shall 
find  reason  to.  Though  for  the  matter,  I  can  challenge 
no  praise,  hauing  but  boi'owed  it,  and  for  the  verse  I  do 
challenge  none,  being  a  thing  that  euerybody  that  neuer 
scarce  bayted  their  horse  at  the  University  take  upon 
them  to  make. 


47.  Description  of  the  Irish  Mantle,  from  Spetisers  "  View 
of  the  State  of  Ireland:  "  —  aboitt  1595. 

It  is  a  fit  house  for  an  out-law,  a  meet  bed  for  a  rebel, 
and  an  apt  cloke  for  a  thiefe.  First,  the  out-law,  being 
for  his  many  crimes  and  villanyes  banished  from  the 
townes  and  houses  of  honest  men,  and  wandring  in  waste 
places,  far  from  danger  of  law,  maketh  his  mantle  his 
house,  and  under  it  covereth  himselfe  from  the  wrath  of 
heaven,  from  the  offence  of  the  earth,  and  from  the  sight 
of  men.  When  it  raineth  it  is  his  pent-house  ;  when  it 
bloweth  it  is  his  tent ;  when  it  freezeth  it  is  his  taberna- 
cle. In  summer  he  can  wear  it  loose,  in  winter  he  can 
wrap  it  close  ;  at  all  times  he  can  use  it ;  never  heavy, 
never  cumbersome.  Likewise,  for  a  rebell  it  is  as  ser- 
viceable. For  in  his  warre  that  he  maketh  (if  at  least  it 
deserves  the  name  of  warre),  when  he  still  flyeth  from 
his  foe,  and  lurketh  in  the  thicke  woods  and  straite 
passages,  waiting  for  advantages,  it  is  his  bed,  yea  and 


204  ILLUSTRATIVE  SI'ECIMENS. 

almost  his  household   stuff.     For  the  wood  is  his  house 

against  all  weathers,  and  his  mantle  is  his  couch  to  sleep 

in.     Therein   he   wrappeth  himself  round,  and   couch- 

eth   himselfe   strongly  against  the   gnats,  which  in  that 

country  doe    more  annoy  the    naked    rebels  whilst  they 

keepe  the  woods,  and  doe  more  sharply  wound  them,  than 

all   their  enemies  swords  or  spears,  which  can  seldome 

come  nigh  them.     Yea  and  oftentimes  their  mantle  ser- 

veth  them,  when   they  are   neere  driven,  being  wrapped 

about  their  left  arme,  instead  of  a  target,  for  it  is  hard  to 

cut  thorough  with  a  sword  ;  besides,  it  is  light  to  beare, 

light    to  throw  away ;    and,  being,   as    they    commonly 

are,  naked,  it  is  to  them  all  in  all.     Lastly,  for  a  theife 

it  is  so  handsome,  as  it  may  seem  it  was  first  invented 

for  him  ;  for  under  it  he  may  cleanly  convey  any  fit  pil- 

la<^e  that  commeth  handsomely  in  his  way,  and  when  he 

goeth  abroad  in  the  night  in  free-booting  it  is  his  best 

and  surest  friend  ;  for,  lying,  as  they  often  do,  two  or 

three  nights  together  abroad  to  watch  for   their  booty, 

with  that  they  can    prettily  shroud    themselves    under  a 

bush  or  bank   side  till   they  may  conveniently  do   their 

errand  ;  and  when  all  is  over  he  can  in  his  mantle  passe 

throuo'h  any  town  or  company,  being  close  hooded  over 

his  head,  as  he  useth,  from  knowledge  of  any  to  whom  he 

is  indangered.  .  .  . 

( Craik.) 


48.     Bacon's  Essays.     Edition  of  1597.     Reprinted  in 
American  Edition,  18G0.     Vol.  XII.  pp.  291,  292. 


OF    STUDIES. 


Studies  serue  for  pastimes,  for  ornaments  and  for  abili- 
ties.    Their  chiefe  use  for  pastime  is  in   priuateness  and 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS.  205 

retiring ;  for  ornaraente  is  in  discourse,  and  for  abilitie  is 
in  iudgement.  For  expert  men  can  execute,  but  learned 
men  are  fittest  to  iudge  or  censure. 

To  spend  too  much  time  in  them  is  slouth  ;  to  use  them 
too  much  for  ornament  is  affectation  ;  to  make  iudgement 
wholly  by  their  rules,  is  the  humour  of  a  schoUer.  They 
j)erfect  Nature,  and  are  perfected  by  experience.  Craftie 
men  contemne  them,  simple  men  admire  them,  wise  men 
use  them :  for  they  teach  not  their  owne  vse,  but  that  is 
a  wisedome  without  them ;  and  aboue  them  wonne  by 
observation.  Read  not  to  contradict,  nor  to  belieue,  but 
to  waigh  and  consider.  Some  bookes  are  to  be  tasted, 
others  to  bee  swallowed,  and  some  few  to  be  chewed  and 
digested :  That  is,  some  bookes  are  to  be  read  only  in 
partes ;  others  to  be  read,  but  cursorily,  and  some  few  to 
be  read  wholly  and  with  diligence  and  attention.  Read- 
ing maketh  a  full  man,  conference  a  readye  man,  and 
writing  an  exacte  man.  And  therefore,  if  a  man  write 
little  he  had  neede  haue  a  great  memorie,  if  he  conferre 
little,  he  had  neede  haue  a  present  wit,  and  if  he  reade 
little,  he  had  neede  haue  much  cunning,  to  seeme  to 
know  that  he  doth  not.  Histories  make  men  wise ;  poets 
wittie  ;  the  mathematics  subtle ;  naturall  Phylosophie 
deepe  :  morall  gi-aue ;  Logicke  and  Rhetoricke  able  to 
contend. 


49.  Beginning  of  the  IGth  Chapter  of  St.  Luke,  from 
the  Authorized  Version  (as  given  in  the  "  English 
ffexapla  ")  :—lGn. 

And  hee  said  also  unto  his  disciples.  There  was  a  cer- 
taine  rich  man  which  had  a  Steward,  and  the   same  was 
accused  unto  him  that  he  had  wasted  his  goods.     And  he 
13 


206  ILLUSTRATIVE   SPECIMENS. 

called  him,  and  said  unto  him,  How  is  it  that  I  lieare  this 
of  thee  ?  Give  an  accom[)t  of  thy  steward.-hip :  for  tiiou 
mayest  bee  no  longer  Steward.  Tlien  the  Steward  said 
within  himselfe,  What  shall  I  doe,  for  my  lord  taketh  away 
from  race  the  Stewardship?  I  cannot  digge,  to  hpff^'a  I 
am  ashamed.  I  am  resolved  what  to  doe,  that  when  I  am 
put  out  of  the  stewardship,  they  may  receive  me  into  their 
houses.  So  hee  called  every  one  of  his  lords  detters  unto 
him,  and  said  unto  the  first.  How  much  owest  thou  unto 
my  lord  ?  And  hee  said  an  hundred  measures  of  oyle. 
And  hee  said  unto  him,  Take  thy  bill,  and  sit  downe 
quickly,  and  write  fiftie.  Then  saide  hee  to  another,  And 
how  much  owest  thou  ?  And  hee  said,  An  hundred  meas- 
ures of  wheat.  And  hee  saide  unto  him,  Take  thy  bill, 
and  write  fourescore.  And  the  lord  commended  the  unjust 
Steward,  because  hee  had  done  wisely  :  for  the  cliildren  of 
this  world  are  in  their  generation  wiser  then  the  children 
of  light.  And  I  say  unto  you,  Make  to  your  selves  friends 
of  the  mammon  of  unrighteousnesse,  that  when  ye  faile, 
they  may  receive  you  into  everlasting  habitations. 

( Craik.) 


50.  From  Hooher's  "  Ecclesiasticall  Poliiie."     Book  J.  §  7. 
Works,  Fol.     London,  1G17. 

By  reason  man  attaineth  vnto  the  knowledge  of  things 
that  are  and  are  not  sensible.  It  resteth  therefore  that 
wee  search  how  man  attaineth  vnto  the  knowledge  of 
such  things  vnsensible,  as  are  to  be  known  that  they  may 
be  done.  Seeing  then  that  nothing  can  moue  vnless  there 
be  some  end,  tlie  desire  whereof  prouoketh  vnto  motion; 
how  should  that  diuine  power  of  the  Soule,  that  Spirit  of 
our  mind,  as  the  Apostle  termeth  it,  euer  stir  itselfe  unto 
action,  vnlesse  it  haue  the  like  spurre  ?      The  end  for 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECDIENS.  207 

which  we  are  moued  to  worke  is  sometimes  the  goodnesse 
which  we  conceiue  of  the  very  working  itselfe,  without 
any  further  respect  at  all ;  and  the  cause  that  procureth 
action  is  the  meere  desire  of  action,  no  other  good  besides 
being  thereby  intended.  Of  certain  turbulent  wits  it  is 
said  lllis  quieta  iiiovere  magna  merces  videbatur.  They 
thought  the  verie  disturbance  of  things  established,  an 
hire  sufficient  to  set  them  on  to  worke.  Sometimes 
that  which  we  doe  is  referred  to  a  further  end,  without 
the  desire  whereof  we  should  leave  the  same  undone,  as 
in  their  Actions  tliat  gave  Almes  to  purchase  thereby  the 
prayse  of  men.  Man  in  perfection  of  nature  being  made 
according  to  tlie  likeness  of  his  Maker,  resembleth  him 
also  in  the  manner  of  working ;  so  that  whatsoever  we 
worke  as  men,  the  same  we  doe  wittingly  worke  and 
frely ;  neither  are  we  according  to  the  manner  of  nat- 
urall  agents  any  way  so  tyed,  but  that  it  is  in  our  power 
to  leave  the  things  we  doe  undone. 


51.  From  the  Preface  to  the  "  Ephemeris  Parliamentaria." 
Fol.     London,  1654. 

One  of  the  most  lawfull  wayes  whereby  man  in  some 
sort  may  be  said  to  revenge  himself  of  the  shorlnesse  of  his 
life,  and  extend  the  measure  thereof  to  a  larger  propor- 
tion then  nature  allowes  him  is  by  the  studie  of  Historic. 
For  Historie  is  the  remembrancer  of  the  time  past,  it  is 
the  monument  generall  erected  over  actions  long  since 
dead  and  interred,  acquainting  such  as  read  the  Epitaph 
thereon  with  the  most  remarkable  passages  of  the  ages 
past ;  so  that  a  Dwarf  by  the  advantage  of  the  ascent  of 
History,  may  suddenly  start  up  (if  not  a  Giant)  one  of 
competent  stature  to  oversee  all  transactions  long  before 
him. 


208  ILLUSTRATIVE  SI'KCIMEXS. 

But  of  all  Histories  none  is  more  pleasant  or  profitable 
then  those  of  our  Native  Country,  which,  as  it  is  an  Island, 
and  so  a  little  entire  world  in  it  self,  hath  in  all  ages 
afforded  as  many  signall  ohservahles  as  any  content  of 
ground  of  the  same  proportion,  neither  Greece  nor  Italie 
it  selfe  excepted,  which  indeed  overmatch  us  not  in  His- 
tories, but  in  Historians.  Otherwise  if  workmen  might 
be  had,  as  fair  an  Edifice  might  be  erected  of  English 
affaires,  such  the  plenty  and  curiosity  of  materials  con- 
currinof  thereunto. 


52.  From  ^'•Boyer's  History  of  William  111. "      Vol.  I.,  p. 
114.     London,  1703. 

Not  long  after  the  world  was  astonish'd  to  hear  that 
the  French  King  had  entirely  abandon'd  Messina  and  all 
Sicily.  Some  ascribed  it  to  meer  Necessity,  and  others 
to  a  Design  of  pursuing  the  Conquest  of  Flanders  with 
redoubled  vigour  and  application.  Howsoever  it  was, 
the  Parliament  of  England  were  of  this  last  opinion  ;  and 
therefore  to  stop  his  career  they  petitioned  the  King  to 
Declare  open  War  against  him,  and  granted  His  Majesty 
a  Poll-Bill,  Prohibiting  by  the  same  Act  the  Importation 
of  all  French  Commodities.  King  Charles,  who  was  now 
desirous  to  enter  into  a  League  with  the  Empire,  Spain, 
and  the  United  Provinces,  would  oblige  them  to  make 
the  same  Prohibition  in  relation  to  French  Goods ;  but 
while  the  Hollanders  were  demurring  upon  the  last 
Point,  believing  that  such  a  Prohibition  would  ruin  their 
Trade,  an  unexpected  Accident  fell  out  that  chang'd  the 
whole  Scene  of  Affaires.-^ 

1  The  change  in  orthography  since  the  time  of  the  preceding  extract 
is  -worthy  of  notice.    See  more  on  this  point  at  the  close  of  the  next. 


ILLUSTRATIVE   SPECIMENS.  209 

53.  From  Sir  William's  Temple  Essay  upon  the  Ancient 
and  Modern  Learning.  Worhs.  Fol.  London, 
1740.      Vol.  L,  p.  Vol, 

Whoever  converses  much  among  the  old  Books,  will 
be  something  hard  to  please  among  the  New  ;  yet  these 
must  have  their  Part  too  in  the  Leisure  of  an  idle  Man, 
and  have  many  of  them  their  Beauties  as  well  as  their 
Defaults.  Those  of  Story,  or  Relations  of  Matters  of 
Fact,  have  a  value  from  their  substance  as  much  as  from 
their  Form  ;  and  the  Variety  of  Events  is  seldom  with- 
out Entertainment  or  Instruction  how  indifferently  so- 
ever the  Tale  is  told.  Other  Sorts  of  "Writings  have  little 
of  Esteem,  but  what  they  receive  from  the  Wit,  Learning, 
or  Genius  of  the  Authors,  and  are  seldom  met  with  of 
any  Excellency,  because  they  do  but  trace  over  the 
Paths  that  have  been  beaten  by  the  Ancients,  or  Com- 
ment, Critick  and  Flourish  upon  them  ;  and  are  at  best 
but  copies  after  those  Originals,  unless  upon  Subjects 
never  touched  by  them,  such  as  are  all  that  relate  to 
the  different  Constitutions  of  Religions,  Laws,  or  Govern- 
ments in  several  Countries,  with  all  Matters  of  Con- 
troversy that  arise  upon  them.^ 

1  The  orthography  here  with  the  exception  of  a  single  word  (Crit- 
ick) is  the  same  as  now  in  use,  save  that  the  nouns  begin  with  a 
capital  letter,  and  the  same  honor  is  extended  to  emphatic  verbs,  as 
Comment,  Critick,  and  Flourish.  This  author  illustrates  the  largest  use 
of  capital  letters,  unless  the  use  be  due  to  the  caprice  of  the  printer. 
Many  authors  or  printers  emplo3'ed  them  to  mark  the  more  emphatic 
words,  and  some  never  ditfered  much  in  this  respect  from  the  generally 
received  usage  of  the  present  day.  The  works  of  Milton  reprinted  at 
London  in  175-3,  and  the  works  of  Bolingbroke  published  in  1754, 
agree  with  the  modern  style.  It  was  during  the  tirst  half  of  the  last 
century  that  capitals  were  used  most  freely,  somewhat  after  the  man- 
ner of  our  kinsmen,  the  Germans. 


210  ILLUSTUATIVE   SPECIMENS. 


LETTERS. 


Original  Letters^  of  persons  of  high,  rank  at  different 
periods.  —  From  Ellis'  Letters  illustrative  of  English 
History. 

I. 

Richard,  Earl  of  Cambridge,  to  King  Henry  the  Fifth, 
suing  for  mercy  after  his  condemnation.  Second 
Series,  Vol.  1.  p.  48.     1415. 

Myn  most  dredfuU  and  sovereyne  lege  Lord,  i  Richard 
York  zowre  humble  subgyt  and  very  lege  man,  beseke 
zou  of  Grace  of  al  maner  offenses  wych  y  haue  done  or 

1  The  orthography  of  these  letters  will  show  the  usage,  or  lack  of 
usage,  of  the  first  classes  in  society,  when  as  yet  there  was  no  settled 
standard.  It  is  only  since  the  publication  of  Johnson's  Dictionary, 
and  the  higher  esteem  in  which  literary  men  are  held,  that  much  im- 
portance has  been  attached  to  this  essential  to  a  good  education. 
The  following  passage  from  Macaulay's  Essays  will  ser\'e  as  authority 
on  the  subject  (he  is  speaking  of  Lord  Bute):  —  "It  is  said  that  his 
spelling  was  incorrect.  But  though  in  our  time  incorrect  spelling  is 
justly  considered  as  a  proof  of  sordid  ignorance,  it  would  be  unjust  to 
apply  the  same  rule  to  people  who  lived  a  century  ago.  The  novel  of 
Sir  Charles  Grandison  was  published  about  the  time  at  which  Lord 
Bute  made  his  appearance  at  Leicester  House.  Our  readers  may 
perhaps  remember  the  account  which  Charlotte  Grandison  gives  of 
her  two  lovers.  One  of  them,  a  fashionable  baronet,  who  talks  French 
and  Italian  fluently,  cannot  write  a  line  in  his  own  language  without 
some  sin  against  orthography;  the  other,  who  is  represented  as  a  most 
respectable  specimen  of  the  j-oung  aristocracy,  and  something  of  a 
virtuoso,  is  described  as  spelling  pretty  well  for  a  lord."  —  Essays  xi. 
\..  19,  (Sheldon's  Amer.  ed.) 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS.  211 

assentyd  to  in  heuy  kynde,  by  steryng  of  odyr  folke 
egging  me  yer  to,  where  in  y  wote  wel  i  liuve  liyll 
offendyd  to  zowre  Hynesse  ;  besechyng  zow  at  the  reve- 
rence of  God  yat  zow  lyke  to  take  me  in  to  the  handys 
of  zowre  raercyfulle  and  pytouse  graace,  thenkyng  zee 
wel  of  zowre  gret  goodnesse.  My  lege  Lord,  my  fulle 
trust  is  yat  zee  wylle  have  consyderacyoun,  thauth  ^  yat 
myn  persone  be  of  none  vahve,  zowre  hye  goodnesse 
wher  God  hath  sette  zow  in  so  hye  estat  to  every  lege 
man  yat  to  zow  longyth  pleiiteousely  to  geve  grace,  yat 
zow  lyke  to  accept,  zys  myn  syniple  reqwest  for  ye  love 
of  oure  lady  and  of  ye  blysfulle  Holy  Gost,  to  whom  I 
pray  yat  yey'^  mot  zowre  hert  enduce  to  al  pyte  and 
grace  for  yeyre^  hye  goodnesse. 


II. 

King  Richard   the  Third  to  his  mother,  the  Duchess  of 
York.  —  1484.  —  Ullis,  Second  Series,  Vol.  I.,p.lGl. 

Madam  I  recommende  me  to  you  as  hertely  as  is  to  me 
possible  ;  beseching  you  in  my  most  humble  and  effectuouse 
wise  of  your  daly  blissing  to  ray  synguler  comfort  and 
defence  in  my  nede.  And,  Madam,  I  hertily  beseche  you 
that  I  may  often  here  from  you  to  my  comfort,  and  suche 
newes  as  ben  here  my  servent  Thomas  Bryan  this  berer 
shall  showe  you  ;  to  whorae  please  it  you  to  yeve  cre- 
dence unto.  And,  Madam,  I  beseche  you  to  be  good  and 
graciouse  lady  to  my  lord  my  Charaberleyn  to  be  }our 
officer  in  Wilshire  in  such  as  Colingbourne  had.  I  trust 
he  shall  therein  do  you  good  service,  and  that  it  please 
you  that  by  this  berer  I  may  understande  youre  pleasur 
1  Though.  2  They.  3  Their. 


212  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

in  this  beiialve.     And  I  pr.'iy  God  sende  you  tli'  accora- 
plisshment   of  your   noble  dii^ires.     Written  at  Poinete- 
freit,  tlie  iij'?  day  of  Juyn,  witli  the  hande  of 
Yo"^  most  humble  son, 

KICARDUS  REX. 


III. 

Lady  Brian,  Governess  of  the  Lady  Elizabeth,  {after- 
wards Queen),  to  Lord  Cromwell,  for  instructions, 
after  the  death  of  Queen  Anne,  her  mother.  —  1536. 
Ellis.     Second  Series,  Vol.  II.,  pp.  81,  82. 

EXTRACTS. 

Now  et  es  so,  my  Lady  Elizabethe  is  put  from  that 
degre  she  was  afore  ;  and  what  degre  she  is  at  now,  I 
know  not  bot  by  be  hering  say  ;  therfor  I  know  not  how 
to  order  her,  nor  myself,  nor  (non)  of  bars  that  I  have 
the  rewl  of ;  that  is  her  women  &  har  gromes :  besych- 
yng  you  to  be  good  Lord  to  my  Lady  &,  to  al  hers ;  and 
that  she  may  haue  som  payment ;  for  she  hath  neither 
gown  nor  kertel,  nor  petecot,  nor  no  maner  of  linnin  for 
smokes,  nor  cerchefes  nor  sieves,  nor  rayls,  nor  body- 
stychets,  nor  handcerchers,  nor  mofelers,  nor  be- 
gems  

God  knoweth,  my  Lady  hath  great  pain  with  her 
great  teeth,  &  they  come  very  slowly  forth  ;  &  causeth 
me  to  suffer  her  Grace  to  have  her  wil  more  than  I 
would ;  I  trust  to  God  &  her  teeth  were  well  graft,  to 
have  her  Grace  after  another  fashion,  than  she  is  yet : 
so  as  I  trust  the  Kings  grace  shal  have  great  comfort  in 
her  Grace.     For  she  is  as  toward  a  Child,  «&  as  gentle 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS.  213 

of  conditions,  as  ever  I  knew  ene  in  my  leyf.  Jesu 
pre&erve  her  Grace.  As  for  a  Day  or  two  at  a  hey 
teym,  or  whan  som  ever  it  shal  please  tlie  Kings  Grace 
to  have  set  abrod,  I  trost  so  to  indever  me,  that  shee  shal 
so  do  as  shal  be  to  the  Kings  honeur,  and  hers  ;  and  than 
after  to  take  her  ease  again 

To  the  ryht  nobel,  &  my  syngeler  good  Lord 

My  Lord  Prive  8el,  be  thys  delyverd. 


IV. 

Minute  of  a  Letter  from  Queen  Elizabeth  to  the  Queen 
of  Scots,  Feb.  \st,  1571.  Ellis,  Second  Series,  Vol.  III. 
pp.  1,  2. 

Madame :  Of  late  time  I  have  receaved  divers  let- 
ters from  yow,  to  the  which  you  maie  well  gesse,  by 
the  accidentes  of  the  time,  whie  I  have  not  made  anie  an- 
swer ;  but  speciallie  because  I  saw  no  matter  in  them  that 
required  any  such  answer  as  could  have  contented  yow, 
and  to  have  discontented  yow  had  bin  but  an  increase 
of  your  impatience,  which  I  thought  tyme  would  have 
mitigated  as  it  doth  commonlie  where  the  cause  thereof 
is  not  truelie  grounded,  and  that  it  be  so  understand  ; 
but  now  findinge  by  your  last  letter  the  27th  of  the  last, 
an  increase  of  your  impatience  tending  allsoe  to  manie 
uncomlie,  passionate,  and  vindicative  speeches,  I  thought 
to  change  my  former  opinion,  and  by  patient  and  advised 
wordes  to  move  yow  to  staie,  or  ells  to  qualifie  your  pas- 
sions, and  to  consider  that  it  is  not  the  manner  to  obtain 
good  things  with  evill  speeches,  nor  benefitts  with  injurious 
chalenges,  nor  to  gett  good  to  yourself  with  doing  evill 
to  another. 


214  ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS. 

Wishing  to  you  the  same  grace  of  God  that  I  wish 
to  myself,  and  that  he  maie  direct  you  to  desire  and 
attaine  to  that  whicli  is  nieete  for  his  lionnor  and 
your  quietnes,  with  contacioun  both  of  bodie  and  minde. 
Given  at  my  Pallace  of  Westminster  the  first  daie  of 
February,  1571. 

Your  Cosin  tliat  wisheth 

you  a  better  mynde. 


Thomas  Lorhin  to  Mr.  Adam  Newton,  the  Tutor  of  Prince 
Henry,  detailing  the  manner  in  xohich  a  young  English 
Gentleman  completed  his  education  at  Paris  in  1600. 
Ellis,  Second  Series,  Vol.  111.,  p.  221. 

Syr 
The  chief  errand  of  my  last  letters  was  to  let  you, 
understand  of  our  safe  comming  hither.  These  will  give 
you  an  account  of  our  tyme  spent  here.  Our  days  there- 
fore are  thus  divided.  In  the  forenoone  Mr.  Puckering 
spends  two  houres  on  horsebacke  ;  from  seven  to  nine  one 
morning,  from  nine  to  eleven  another.  Two  other  houres 
he  spends  in  French  ;  one  in  reading,  the  other  in  render- 
ing to  his  teacher  some  part  of  a  Latine  authour  by  word 
of  mouth.  A  fifth  hour  is  employed  in  learning  to  handle 
his  weapon  which  entertains  him  till  twelve  of  the  clock, 
when  the  bell  warns  him  to  dinner,  where  the  company 
continues  together  till  Two  o'clock,  either  passing  the 
time  in  discourse,  or  some  honest  recreation  perteyning  to 
armes.  Then  they  are  warned  by  the  bell  to  dauncing 
which  houlds  him  till  Three,  when  he  retyres  himself  into 
his  chamber,  and  there  employs  with  me   two  other  hours 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS.  215 

in  reading  over  some  Latin  author  ;  which  done  he  trans- 
lates some  little  part  of  it  into  French,  leaving  liis  faults 
to  be  corrected  the  morrow  following  by  his  teacher. 
After  supper  we  take  a  brief  survey  of  all. 

Your  most  humbly  devoted 
in  all  duty  and  service, 

Thomas  Lorkin. 
Paris  this  6  of  Noverab. 

Stilo  novo. 
To  the  honor"'"''  Mr.  Adam  Newton 
at  the  Princes  Court  in  England. 


VI. 

Lord  Bacon  on  his  Impeachment.     Ellis.     Second 
Series,  Vol.  Ill  p.  235:  —  1620. 

My  verie   good  Lords 

I  humbly  praye  your  Lord- 
ships to  make  a  favourable  and  true  construction  of  my 
absence.  It  ys  noe  fayninge  nor  fayntinge,  but  sicknes 
both  of  my  harte  and  of  my  backe  ;  though  joyned  with 
that  comfort  of  my  mynde  that  persuadeth  me  that  I  am 
not  farre  from  heaven,  whereof  I  feele  the  first  fruites. 
And  because,  whether  I  lyve  or  dye,  I  would  be  glad  to 
preserve  my  honor  and  fame,  as  farre  as  I  am  worthy e 
hearinge  that  some  complayntes  of  base  Bryberye  are 
come  before  your  Lordships,  my  requests  to  your  Lord- 
ships are  ;  First,  that  you  will  mayntayne  me  in  your 
good  opynion  without  prejudice  untill  my  cause  be 
hearde  ;  Secondlye,  that  in  regard  I  have  sequestred 
my  mynde  at  this  tyme  in  great  part  from  worldlye 
matters,  thinkinge   of  my  accorapt   and   answere    in    a 


216  ILLUSTRATIVE  Sl'KCIMENS. 

higher  Cuiirt,  your  Lordships  would  geve  me  some  con- 
venient tyme  accordinge  to  the  cour.se  of  other  Courtes 
to  advise  with  my  counsel),  and  to  make  my  answers ; 
wherein  neverthelesse  my  counsells  part  wilbe  the  lest, 
for  I  shall  not  by  the  grace  of  God  trick  up  an  innocen- 
cye  with  cavillacions,  but  playnlye  and  ingenuouslye 
(as  your  Lordships  know  my  maner  ys)  declare  what 
1  knowe  or  remember ;  Thyrdlye,  that  accordinge  to  the 
course  of  Justice,  I  may  be  allowed  to  except  to  the  wit- 
ness brought  against  me,  and  to  move  questions  to  your 
Lordships  for  their  crosse  examinacions ;  and  likewise  to 
produce  my  owne  witnesses  for  discoverye  of  the  truthe ; 
and  Lastlye,  if  their  come  anye  more  peticions  of  like 
nature,  that  your  Lordships  would  be  pleased  not  to  take 
anye  prejudice  or  apprehension  of  anye  number  or  muster 
of  them  against  a  Judge  that  makes  two  thousand  De- 
crees and  Orders  in  a  yeare  ;  not  to  speake  of  courses 
that  have  bene  taken  for  huntinge  out  complayntes 
ao^ainst  me  ;  but  that  I  may  answere  them  accordinge 
to  the  rules  of  Justice  severallye  and  respectivelye. 

These  i-equests  I  hope  to  appeare  to  your  Lordships  no 
other  then  just.  And  soe  thinkinge  my  selfe  happye  to 
have  soe  noble  Peers  and  reverende  Prelates  to  discerne 
of  my  cause,  and  desyringe  that  noe  priviledge  of  great- 
nes  for  subterfuge  of  guiltynes,  but  meane  (as  I  sayd) 
to  deale  fayrlye  and  playnlye  with  your  Lordships,  and 
to  put  my  selfe  upon  your  honors  and  favours,  I  pray 
God  to  blesse  your  Counsells  and  your  persons ;  and  rest 

Your  Lordships  humble  sei'vaunt, 
9  Martij,  1620.  Fr.  St.  Alban,  Cane. 

To  the  right  ho.  his  verie  good 
Lords  the  Lords  Spyrituall  and 
Temporall,  in  the  Upper  House  of 
Parliament  assembled. 


ILLUSTRATIVE  SPECIMENS.         217 

VII. 

Cromwell  to  the  Lady  Elizabeth  Ms  wife  :  —  1651. 

My  deerest, 

I  could  not  satisfie  my  selfe  to  omit  this 
poast,  although  I  have  not  much  to  write,  yett  indeed  I 
love  to  write  to  my  Deere  whoe  is  very  much  in  my 
heart.  It  joyes  mee  to  heere  thy  soule  pro?pereth ;  the 
Lord  increase  his  favors  to  thee  more  and  more.  The 
great  good  thy  soule  can  wish  is  that  the  Lord  lift  upon 
[thee]  the  light  of  his  countenance  which  is  better  then 
life.  The  Lord  blesse  all  thy  good  counsell  and  example 
to  those  about  thee,  and  heere  all  thy  prayers,  and  ac- 
cept thee  alwayes.  I  am  glad  to  heere  thy  Sonn  and 
Daughter  are  with  thee.  I  hope  thou  wilt  have  some 
good  opportunitye  of  good  advise  to  him.  Present  my 
duty  to  my  Mother,  and  my  love  to  all  the  familye. 
Still  pray  for 

Edenburgh  thine 

3d  of  May  1651  0  Cromwell. 

For  my  beloved  wife  Elizabeth 
Cromwell  att  the  Cockpitt  in  "West- 
minster, theise. 


INDEX. 


Alcuin,  29. 
AllVed,  31,  33. 
Alliteration,  88,  102. 
AniLiicfin   Branch  of  English, 

84,  158. 
Ancron  Kiwle,  89. 
Anglo-Norman  dialect,  58. 
Anglo-Saxon  authors,  32. 

chronicle,  30 . 

conquest,  22. 

economy  in  use  of  words, 

38-40." 

grammar,  36. 

inflections,  36,  37,  99. 

kinds  of  words,  42. 

language,    character,    27, 

34. 

dialects,  24. 

homogenous,  24. 

literature.  Christian,  29. 

pagiin,  28. 

unlike   that  of  other 

nations,  30. 

poetry,  31. 

pronunciation,  36. 

prose,  33. 

rules  of  syntax,  38. 

terminations    in    English 

words,  41. 

variety  of  tribes,  23. 

words    for    moral    ideas, 

34. 

words  in  use,  42. 

in  vocabulary,  43. 

Arabs,  learning,  52. 
Arthur  and  his  knights,  75. 


Aryan  family,  14. 
Ascham,  124. 

B. 

Bacon,  Lord,  138. 
Bacon,  Roger,  76. 
Bede,  23. 
Beowulf,  31. 
Boluigbroke,  147. 
Browning,  Mrs.,  103,  150. 
Bunyan,  145. 
Byron,  150. 


Cicdmon,  32. 
Canterbury  Tales,  111. 
Carlyle,  150. 
Caxton,  118. 
Celtic  character,  15. 

grammar,  19. 

influence,  17. 

language,  no  fusion,  19. 

love  of  poesy,  17. 

Chapman's  Homer,  137 

Chaucer,  67-70,  110-114. 

Cheke,  Sir  John,  124. 

Coleridge's  Glossarial  Index,94. 

Cowper,  144. 

Crannier,  123. 

Creed  of  Piers  Ploughman,  106. 

D. 

Danes,  in  England,  40. 

influence,  49. 

related  to  Normans,  48. 


INDEX. 


219 


Daniel,  137. 

Danish  words  in  the  language, 

50. 
Defoe,  146. 
Donne,  137. 

Drama,  eiirly  English,  133. 
Dramatic  Literature,  133-13G. 
Dryden,  142. 

E. 

England  and  English,  names 
first  used,  26. 

English,  Earliest,  64. 

English  language,  changes  in 
orthography  and  pronun- 
ciation, 152. 

date  of  beginning,  100. 

English  language,  growth,  100. 

indebted    to    the    clergy, 

153. 

Norman    words    in,    104, 

114. 

origin,  100. 

• settled,  115. 

English,  Old,  60. 

English  language  in  Great 
Britain,  151. 

in  United  States,  151. 

English  metrical  romance,  97. 


F. 


Fortescue,  119. 

French  language,  dialects  in,  79. 

disuse  of,  60. 

in  England,  55-57. 

taught  in  schools,  57. 

French  Literature  in  England, 

66-68,  78. 
French  School,  140-144. 
Froissart,  82,  83,  122. 

G. 

Genitive  form  Ms,  87. 
Geoffrey  of  Monmouth,  75. 
German  literatiu-e,  influence  of, 
150. 


Gesta  Romanoruni,  75. 

Geste  of  Kyng  Horn,  93. 

Gibbon,  llit.  ' 

Gothic  family  of  nations,  22. 

Gower,  114. 

Grammatical    changes    of   the 

13th  century,  93. 
Gray,  144. 

H. 

Hall,  Joseph,  137. 
Herbert,  137. 
Historians,  English,  149. 
Hobbes,  143. 
Hooker,  138. 
Hume,  149. 


Inflections  in  Early  English,  99. 
Italian    Literature,    Influence, 
131. 

J. 

James  I.  of  Scotland,  116. 
Johnson,  Samuel,  148, 149. 

L. 

Langlande,  104. 

Latimer,  124. 

Latins  Chroniclers,  74. 

Latin  language,  use,  74. 

Latin  literature  of  the  Nor- 
mans, 74,  77. 

Latin  terminations,  128. 

Latin  words  introduced,  124- 
128. 

Layamon,  86-88. 

Lydgate,  116,  119. 

M. 

Macaulay,  149,  150. 
Malory,  Sir  Thomas,  117. 
Mandeville,  103. 
Mapes,  Walter,  75,  80. 


220 


INDEX. 


Merry  Talcs,  G7. 
Metrical  Konianccs,  81. 
Milton,  138,  lU'J. 
Minot,  Lawrence,  102. 
More,  Sir  Thomas,  122. 

Life  of  Richard  IIL,  122. 

Mort  Arthur,  117. 
Motley,  150. 

N. 

Norman  character,  54. 

conquest,  53. 

element  distinct,  54,  61. 

learning    and     literature, 

52,  78. 
Normans   unite  with   Saxons, 

63. 
Nut-brown  Maid,  120. 

O. 

Ormulum,  90. 

Owl  and  Nightingale,  93. 


Participle  in  incj,  87, 108. 

Paston  Letters,  117. 

Pastoral  Poetry,  132. 

Pccock,  Bishop,  117. 

Piers  Ploughman,  104. 

Poeti-y,  revival  of,  150. 

Political  Songs,  99. 

Pope,  144. 

Prescott,  150. 

Prose     as      affected     by    the 

French  school,  144. 
Prose  of  the  14th  century,  70. 


Q. 


Quarles,  137. 


E. 


Eeformers,  122. 
Reliquiffi  Antiquse,  93. 
Richard  de  Bury,  75. 
Robert  Mannynge,  95. 


Robert  of  Gloucester,  93. 

Robertson,  15(J. 

Robin  Hood,  96. 

Roman  Element,  influence,  21. 

Romances,  character,  81. 

metrical,  81. 

prose,  82. 

Romance  of  .(Vlexander,  92. 
Roniauiit  of  the  Rose,  110. 

S. 

San  Greal,  80. 

Scholastic  philosophy,  77. 

Scriptures,  Versions,  137. 

Sermons  of  the  13th  century, 
93. 

Shakspeare,  134-136. 

Sidney,  Sir  Philip,  132. 

Spenser,  136. 

Study  of  words,  129,  130. 

Style,  as  dependent  on  difier- 
I  eat    Elements    of   Lan- 

I  guage,  128,  129. 

Surrey,  lol. 

Svnonymes,  59. 

Swift,  146. 

T. 

Taylor,  Jeremy,  138,  143. 
Tennyson,  103,  1-50. 
Theological  Literature,  77,  138. 
Tyndale,  108,  123. 

V. 

Vindex  Anglicus,  125. 

W. 

Wace,  79. 

Walton,  Izaak,  145. 

Warner,  136. 

William  of  Malmesbury,  74. 

William  the  Conqueror,  72. 

Wither,  141. 

Worcester,  152. 

Wordsworth,  133,  150. 

Wvatt,  131. 

Wycliffe,  105,  107. 


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